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9 Mar 2010 : Column 222W—continued
There is no estimate of the number of private colleges that have closed as a result of failure to gain accreditation from an accreditation body as distinct from sponsor licensing for UKBA purposes. If a private college does not have accreditation it does not prevent it offering courses to UK or other EEA nationals outside of Tier 4 of the points based system.
Mr. Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of private colleges that have received and subsequently lost accreditation as a bona fide institution offering courses for overseas students (a) temporarily and (b) permanently. [314605]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 3 February 2010]: Five private colleges that held a tier 4 sponsor licence at one time have since lost accreditation from their approved body and had their sponsor licence removed. The UK Border Agency does not hold any information on whether these institutions have since re-applied to the accrediting body. As at 31 January 2010 UKBA had revoked the licences of 15 educational institutions.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many tier 4 applications are awaiting decision in (a) India, (b) Nepal and (c) Bangladesh. [320946]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 8 March 2010]: As of the end of January, the number of Tier 4 student visa applications lodged at our visa application centres in India, Nepal and Bangladesh that were awaiting a decision were as follows:
| Number | |
Firearms: Crime
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many instances of crimes involving a gun have been reported to (a) Essex and (b) Southend police in each year since 1997; and how many such reports led to a (i) prosecution and (ii) conviction. [320649]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Available information relates to offences recorded by the police in Essex in which firearms were reported to have been used from 1997 to 2008-09 and are given in tables (A) and (B). This information is not collected centrally for Southend.
Firearms are taken to be involved in a crime if they are fired, used as a blunt instrument or used as a threat against a person.
Information on prosecutions and convictions is not available centrally as specific circumstances of the offences are not collected beyond definitions provided by the statutes.
| Table B: Offences recorded by the police in Essex in which firearms were reported to have been used( 1) , 2002-03 to 2008-09 | |||
| Air-weapons | Non air-weapons | Total | |
| (1) By weapon being fired, used as a blunt instrument against a person or used as a threat. (2) The National Crime Recording Standard was introduced in April 2002. Figures before and after that date are not directly comparable. (3) More explicit guidelines for the classification of weapons introduced on 1 April 2004 may have increased the recording of firearm offences, particularly those committed by imitation weapons. | |||
Identity Cards: Databases
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 7 December 2009, Official Report, column 77W, on identity cards: databases, what the prescribed circumstances are under which information may be provided from the National Identity Register under the Identity Cards Act 2006; and to which organisations such information has been provided. [314334]
Meg Hillier: The Identity Cards Act 2006, and secondary legislation made there under, sets out who can be provided with information from an individual's entry on the Register and under what circumstances. In particular, the Identity Cards Act 2006 (Provision of Information without Consent) Regulations 2009, and the Identity Cards Act 2006 (Information and Code of Practice on Penalties) Order 2009 prescribe government departments and public authorities respectively who may be provided with information without the consent of the individual.
So far, information has been provided to the Home Office and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office so that the UK Border Agency and consular posts abroad can be notified of any identity cards that have been reported lost or stolen.
Identity Cards: Marketing
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent on (a) advertising, (b) marketing, (c) branding and (d) public relations in respect of (i) identity cards and (ii) the National Identity Register. [305109]
Meg Hillier: The information is as follows:
(a) The Identity and Passport Service has to date spent £1,299,000 on buying advertising space to communicate to the business community nationally and to consumers in Greater Manchester, north west England and London in respect of (i) and
(ii). The messages, both online and offline highlighted general issues around the risks of identity theft and fraud and encouraged people to be "idsmart" by being aware of the risks.
(b) The IPS has to date spent £87,700 on developing and printing marketing material such as brochures, leaflets and application guidance notes for consumers in Greater Manchester, north west of England, London and airside workers in respect of (i) and (ii).
(c) The IPS has to date spent £11,930 on branding in respect of (i) and (ii).
(d) The IPS has to date spent £0 (nothing) on public relations in respect of (i) and (ii).
Illegal Immigrants
Mr. Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff his Department and its agencies have appointed who were later discovered to be illegal immigrants since 2005. [320440]
Mr. Woolas: In 2005 one appointed member of staff was discovered to be working illegally, although he was in the country legitimately. There have been no more cases since.
Immigration
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the number of older, non-asylum cases considered by the UK Border Agency which have resulted in (a) removal and (b) the award of a grant in each of the last five years; and how many such cases remain outstanding. [317319]
Mr. Woolas: The chief executive of the UK Border Agency Lin Homer, reported in her letter to the Home Affairs Select Committee (HASC) on 4 February 2010 about the group of older, non-asylum cases where the application has been dealt with, but where there is no formal record that the individual has left the country.
This review is in the early stages and the UK Border Agency has concluded just over 200 cases. The Agency is currently working on those cases that fall into the exceptional circumstances criteria for expedition and is planning to increase resource allocated to this work as the clearance of casework backlogs is completed. The Agency is planning that all of the remaining files will be reviewed and archived by summer 2011. Lin Homer will provide a further progress update on the conclusion of these cases in the next update to HASC.
Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what representations he has received on potential changes to the freight data capture powers given to the police by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006; [320554]
(2) how many times the freight data capture powers contained within the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 have been used by each police force since the Act came into force. [320555]
Alan Johnson:
The requirement for individuals and companies to supply information on the movement of freight is included in Section 33 of the Immigration,
Asylum and Nationality Act 2006. These powers can only be used once the Secretary of State has made an order subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House. Such an order has not yet been made and thus the powers have not so far been introduced.
In autumn 2009, in light of the economic climate, the Home Office concluded that it would not be appropriate to introduce such an order at this time, due to the potential and uncertain impact on industry. The Home Office is working with partners and industry representatives to identify ways that the objectives can be achieved while minimising industry impact.
Since the Act was passed it has become increasingly evident that industry concerns in relations to the costs and other burdens of facilitating this power should be considered fully before secondary legislation is laid before Parliament. Representations have been made from a range of industry representatives and Home Office officials have met a range of these representatives and discussed many of their concerns.
Representations have dealt broadly with the costs of introducing systems which would be able to provide information to the police; the type of information that would be required; the breadth of the information required in relation to the periods covered, and the detail of the information and the operating models for any systems which may be introduced. Representations have also been made in relation to the inclusion of these powers in the Draft Immigration (Simplification) Bill, which would replace the 2006 Act.
The incorporation of s.33 in the new Bill does not represent any change in policy and we remain committed to consult formally with industry before introducing secondary legislation before Parliament.
We are confident that the measures in place for countering the threats to the UK in relation to the movements of goods match the current level of threat and remain mindful of the need to balance the need to facilitate trade while ensuring that our capability to counter this threat remains effective.
Members: Correspondence
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to reply to the letters of 3 and 15 February 2010 from the hon. Member for Walsall North. [320345]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 4 March 2010]: The chief executive of the UK Border Agency wrote to my hon. Friend on 4 March 2010.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to reply to the letter of 20 January 2010 from the hon. Member for Walsall North to the UK Border Agency concerning a resident in his constituency, references 51397020 and B21167/9. [320346]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 4 March 2010]: The deputy director for the North West of the UK Border Agency, Kevin Romano, wrote to my hon. Friend on 4 March 2010.
Police: Vehicles
Mr. Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department issues guidance to police forces on the provision of vehicular support to police officers investigating suspected gang-related activity. [321260]
Mr. Hanson: Neither the Home Office, nor any of its agencies, has issued any such guidance.
Sexual Offences
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many people have been (a) arrested for, (b) prosecuted for, (c) convicted for and (d) acquitted of offences of sexual assault in each of the last 10 years; [320118]
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