Secure Accommodation: Young Offenders
Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will place in the Library copies of the most recent reports by Youth Justice Board performance monitors on the secure estate. [53257]
Mr Blunt: Reports prepared by Youth Justice Board (YJB) performance monitors on the secure estate are used for internal management by the YJB. They allow the YJB to consider commissioning and performance options, and factors relating to the placement of young people. Reports contain personal, sensitive and commercial information that if published would compromise function, relationships and prejudice contracts. HM Inspectorate of Prisons and Ofsted undertake formal inspections of the youth secure estate and their reports are published and can be accessed through the inspectorate websites.
3 May 2011 : Column 630W
Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the potential savings to the public purse arising from the closure of facilities in the youth justice secure estate in each year of the comprehensive spending review period. [52745]
Mr Blunt: The estimated savings generated by the Youth Justice Board through its decommissioning of parts of the youth secure estate in 2011-12 are £17.6 million.
The decommissioning programme began in 2009 and generated savings of £6.25 million in 2009-10 and £21.949 million in 2010-11.
Savings across the remainder of the spending review period are yet to be finalised and will depend on the demand for youth secure places in the period.
Sentencing: Females
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many women who formerly served in the armed forces are serving a custodial sentence in prisons in England and Wales; and how many such prisoners have children who are in the care of a local authority or kinship placement. [53325]
Mr Blunt: In September 2010, the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Defence published the results of a joint study to estimate how many prisoners in England and Wales had been in the regular armed forces. This showed that 3.5% of prisoners had previously served in the regular armed forces, of which 0.4% were female. This report may be found in the House of Commons Library and at the following web link:
http://www.dasa.mod.uk/applications/newWeb/www/index. php?page=66&pubType=3
Data on prisoners with children who are in the care of a local authority or kinship placement are not held centrally, and to collect them would incur disproportionate cost.
Young Offenders
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) 15, (b) 16 and (c) 17-year-olds were given custodial sentences in each police force area since 2009; and what the average length was of such sentences. [53373]
Mr Blunt: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave on 16 March 2011, Official Report, column 474W.
Please note that court proceedings data for 2010 are planned for publication on 26 May 2011.
Culture, Media and Sport
BBC
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 6 September 2010, Official Report, column 309W, on the BBC, what progress has been made on proposals to make the BBC more accountable to Parliament; what discussions he has had with the BBC on this issue since October 2010; and if he will make a statement. [53013]
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Mr Vaizey: My officials are working with the BBC Trust on the detail of the new arrangements. The Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, the right hon. Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt) discussed the matter in a phone call with the chairman of the BBC Trust on 24 March.
Another new measure to increase the BBC’s accountability to Parliament has been the recent introduction by the Government of pre-appointment scrutiny for the post of BBC Trust chairman by the Culture, Media and Sport Committee. This offers Parliament the opportunity to assess a preferred candidate’s suitability for the role and their key priorities in advance of appointment. The committee held a pre-appointment hearing with Lord Patten on 10 March.
Broadband
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to facilitate competition in the deployment of superfast broadband. [53067]
Mr Vaizey [holding answer 28 April 2011]:The Government’s broadband strategy, “Britain’s Superfast Broadband Future” published in December 2010 includes a number of policy and regulatory interventions aimed at supporting and stimulating investment in superfast broadband networks—including encouraging sharing of infrastructure, allowing new deployment of overhead communications cables and encouraging other methods of reducing civil engineering costs such as micro-trenching. The Government are also investing £530 million up to 2015 to support broadband rollout in areas the market will not reach in a reasonable time. Those projects will be subject to open competitive tender procedures consistent with European procurement guidelines. The networks they support will have to be made available on an open access basis.
Copyright: Internet
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when Ofcom expects to publish the Initial Obligations Code. [53297]
Mr Jeremy Hunt: The Office of Communications (Ofcom) have produced a draft Initial Obligations Code which we are considering closely within Government. However, the code must reflect and contain the provisions of the cost-sharing statutory instrument, which will itself have to be withdrawn and amended to reflect the judgment in the judicial review of the online infringement of copyright provisions. This will inevitably lead to a delay in the code's publication, but I would hope that we can make clear the Government's proposed changes shortly, together with the overall implementation timetable.
Departmental Work Experience
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many students from (a) the UK and (b) Bassetlaw constituency have been offered internships in his Department since 8 May 2010. [53207]
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John Penrose: The Department has not offered internships to students in the UK or from the Bassetlaw constituency since 8 May 2010.
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what remuneration his Department offers interns. [53296]
Mr Jeremy Hunt: My Department would pay the equivalent of a grade C (EO) salary—£23,197.
Digital Economy Act 2010
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will publish a timetable for the implementation of the Digital Economy Act 2010. [53293]
Mr Jeremy Hunt: The implementation of the online infringement of copyright initial obligations has been affected by a number of factors. We now have the judgment from the judicial review, and are currently considering the changes which will need to be made to the cost-sharing statutory instrument in light of this. This will inevitably impact on the timetable for implementing the notification provisions of the Digital Economy Act. The report by Ofcom into the workability of sections 17 and 18 of the Act is due shortly. I will set out what action we plan to take as soon as we have had an opportunity to consider the report and all other relevant factors.
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when the review of Section 17 of the Digital Economy Act 2010 will report. [53294]
Mr Jeremy Hunt: We expect the report from Ofcom into the technical workability of the reserve site blocking provisions by the middle of May this year.
English Heritage
Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether English Heritage plans to tender for the digitisation of aerial surveys undertaken in the 1940s. [52744]
John Penrose: English Heritage (EH) has no plans to tender for the digitisation of the 1940s post-war aerial photographic surveys at present. The photography is fully catalogued and access to the images is provided for a wide range of private and commercial users through the EH national collection of archives in Swindon.
House of European History
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether his Department plans to loan any exhibits to the House of European History project. [53008]
Mr Vaizey: This Department is not aware of any requests to our sponsored museums to loan exhibits to the House of European History project. Any such requests would be made to the museums directly.
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Internet: Children
Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps his Department is taking to assist children to use the Internet safely. [52843]
Mr Vaizey [holding answer 28 April 2011]:The protection of children from illegal and harmful content when online is an absolute priority for this Government. The UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) brings together over 170 organisations including Government Departments such as the Department for Education, the Home Office, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, children's charities, law enforcement and academia. UKCCIS members are committed to working together to help keep children and young people safe online.
The UK has a very successful model of industry-led self-regulation. The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) works closely with internet service providers to ensure that webpages which provide access to images of child abuse, including those hosted outside of the UK, are reported and removed or blocked at source. Government are also working closely with industry as part of the UK Council for Child Internet Safety to improve many aspects of children's digital safety.
In addition, I hosted a discussion in February with internet service providers, UKCCIS, the IWF and other interested groups to look at how parental controls can be further improved. A further discussion has been arranged to look at progress on this issue in May this year.
Local Press: Competition
Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent assessment he has made of the level of competitiveness in the local newspaper supply chains in England. [53680]
Mr Vaizey: We have made no recent assessment of the level of competitiveness in local newspaper supply chains in England.
National Lottery: Retail Trade
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will direct (a) his Department and (b) the National Lottery Commission to undertake an investigation into the rules governing (i) the siting of lottery terminals and (ii) the allocation of such terminals to supermarkets. [53114]
John Penrose: The selection of national lottery retailers is, rightly, a commercial matter for Camelot, as it is incentivised to place the terminals where they will generate the most sales and therefore revenue for good causes.
Camelot is required, through its licence to operate the national lottery, to apply clear and reasonable criteria when selecting retailers. The National Lottery Commission is assured that the criteria in place are reasonable and that Camelot has been applying those criteria in making decisions.
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Olympic Games 2012
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when he plans to publish details of compensation available for businesses affected by the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics. [53323]
Hugh Robertson: The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), who has the responsibility for implementing the advertising and trading regulations at Games time, has a statutory requirement to publish a Detailed Notice giving advice to those directly involved six months before the advertising and trading regulations come into effect. The notice is expected to be published in late 2011/early 2012 and will cover financial assistance arrangements.
Olympic Games 2012: Small Businesses
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether he has considered the merits of funding a programme of advice and support for small businesses in the regulated zones surrounding the Olympic Park. [52668]
Hugh Robertson: The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), who has the responsibility for implementing the advertising and trading regulations at games time, has a small budget to provide advice and assistance to those affected by the regulations. The ODA has a statutory requirement to publish a detailed notice giving advice to those directly involved six months before the regulations come into effect. The notice is expected to be published in late 2011/early 2012.
Rugby: World Cup
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent discussions he has had on funding for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup; and if he will make a statement. [53736]
Hugh Robertson: I met with the executive chairman and chief executive of the Rugby Football League on 7 April to discuss the 2013 World cup. I am keeping the funding situation under review pending the decision by the North West Development Agency which is due by the end of May.
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to ensure that the North West benefits from the 2013 Rugby League World Cup. [53737]
Hugh Robertson: I have written to the chair of the Regional Development Agency, Robert Hough, making clear the Government's interest in 2013.
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what discussions he has had on Warrington's bid to host matches for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup; and if he will make a statement. [53738]
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Hugh Robertson: The selection of venues for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup is a matter for the Rugby Football League. I have not discussed any of the bids to host matches.
UK Film Council
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will assess the merits of launching a review of film policy following the abolition of the UK Film Council. [53271]
Mr Jeremy Hunt: We have assessed the merits and believe this will be a useful exercise.
White List
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport (1) for how long he expects the White List to remain suspended; [53172]
(2) what plans he to introduce a replacement for the White List; [53173]
(3) whether his Department plans to compensate countries wishing to join the White List in respect of revenue foregone due to the suspension of the White List. [53174]
John Penrose: The previous Government decided it was not appropriate to consider any new applications for the White List while the future of remote gambling regulation is under consideration, and we agree. I hope to announce the Government’s preferred solution in due course. There are no plans to compensate jurisdictions who might wish to join the White List, and it would be hard to justify why British taxpayers should be asked to make such payments.
Home Department
Alcoholic Drinks: Prices
Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what legal advice she has received on the effect on local authority licensing arrangements of the introduction of a (a) voluntary and (b) mandatory minimum price per unit of alcohol. [51770]
James Brokenshire: The Secretary of State has received legal advice on a range of issues pertaining to alcohol pricing, including the effect of a minimum price per unit of alcohol on local authority licensing arrangements. The content of legal advice is subject to legal professional privilege and it is not appropriate to set it out at this stage other than in terms of the areas to which it relates.
Alcoholic Drinks: Young People
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions there were for being drunk and disorderly of defendants aged 10 to 17 years in (a) England and Wales and (b) each police force area in England in each year since 2006. [53372]
James Brokenshire: The number of persons aged 10 to 17 proceeded against for being drunk and disorderly, by police force area, England and Wales 2006-09 (latest available) is shown in the table.
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Court proceedings data for 2010 are planned for publication on 26 May 2011.
| Number of persons aged 10 to 17 proceeded against at magistrates courts for being ‘drunk and disorderly’ (1) , by police force area, England and Wales 2006 - 09 (2,3,4) | ||||
| Police force area | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
| (1) Includes: Being guilty in any public place, while drunk, of disorderly behaviour. Being found drunk in a highway or other public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises. (2) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July, and August 2008. (5) Includes City of London. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services In She Ministry of Justice | ||||
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Animal Experiments
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her policy is on the establishment of limits on the pain which laboratory animals are permitted to experience for experimental purposes in laboratories. [51711]
Lynne Featherstone: The criteria used to assign severity limits to regulated procedures are set out in paragraphs 5.40 to 5.42 of the Guidance on the Operation of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (HC321). Copies of the Guidance have been placed in the House Library.
Asylum
Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how long, on average, the UK Border Agency took to process an asylum application in the latest period for which figures are available. [53624]
Damian Green: In the most recent 12 months for which data are available, the average length of time to process an asylum application to full determination was 263 calendar days.
3 May 2011 : Column 638W
In answering this question we have assumed the date of final determination to be the date an application was either Granted or became Appeal Rights Exhausted (ARE).
For those cases which had no recourse to appeal, chose not to exercise appeal rights or appealed too late, we have taken final determination to be the date of initial decision.
All figures quoted are internal management information only and are subject to change. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols.
Asylum: North Africa
Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum applications were received from residents of (a) Mauritania, (b) Morocco, (c) Algeria, (d) Tunisia, (e) Libya and (f) Egypt in each month of 2010-11. [53668]
Damian Green: The following table shows the number of asylum applications received in the UK, excluding dependants, for nationals of (a) Mauritania, (b) Morocco, (c) Algeria, (d) Tunisia, (e) Libya and (f) Egypt in each month of 2010-11. Information on residents of the above countries is not available.
| Asylum applications (1) received in the United Kingdom, excluding dependants, January 2010 to February 2011, nationals of Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt | ||||||
| Country of nationality | ||||||
|
|
Mauritania | Morocco | Algeria | Tunisia | Libya | Egypt |
| (1) Provisional figures rounded to the nearest 5 (“—” = 0, “*” = 1 or 2) and may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. | ||||||
Further information on asylum applications are published monthly, quarterly and annually in the Control of Immigration bulletins and Monthly Asylum Applications Tables available from the Home Office’s science, research and statistics web pages at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics
The Control of Immigration bulletins are also available from the Library of the House.
COE Commissioner for Human Rights
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) with reference to the issue of the paper on Criminalisation of migration in Europe: human rights implications issued by the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, CommDH/Issue Paper (2010)1, whether (a) the Government and (b) the EU is considering any changes to immigration-related policies as a consequence of the issue paper and its recommendations; [52198]
3 May 2011 : Column 639W
(2) whether her Department has responded to the issue paper on Criminalisation of migration in Europe: human rights implications issued by the Commissioner of Human Rights of the Council of Europe, CommDH/Issue Paper (2010)1; and what assessment she has made of each conclusion and recommendation. [52499]
Damian Green: The Issue Paper mentioned was commissioned and published by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr Thomas Hammarberg, following a seminar organised by the Commissioner's Office in Paris on 24-25 September 2009. The paper was issued “for the purpose of contributing to debate or further reflection” and does not necessarily reflect the position of the Commissioner.
The Government are not considering any changes to immigration policies as a consequence of the paper and are not aware of any discussion or consideration of policy changes in the EU based on the paper. There is no obligation on Member Governments of the Council of Europe to take any follow up action on such papers and accordingly the Government have not responded to the paper, nor carried out a detailed assessment of its recommendations. The Government will continue to take firm action against illegal immigration whilst ensuring full respect of the human rights of individual migrants and of international obligations regarding the protection of genuine refugees.
Convictions
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether a person with an unspent conviction who is thereby prohibited from making an application for funds under the domestic violence rule is eligible for support from (a) the Sojourner Project and (b) any other funding from the public purse; and if she will make a statement. [53018]
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Damian Green: A person with an unspent conviction is not prevented from applying for (a) support from the Sojourner Project, (b) settlement under paragraph 289A of the Immigration Rules or (c) a waiver of the fee for such an application on the basis of destitution.
Crime
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) arrests and (b) prosecutions for (i) being drunk and disorderly, (ii) being found drunk on a highway, public place or on licensed premises and (iii) being drunk in or when entering a designated sports event there have been in each police force area in England and Wales in each year since 2007. [53404]
James Brokenshire: The number of defendants proceeded against for being ‘drunk and disorderly’ (which includes ‘Being guilty in any public place, while drunk, of disorderly behaviour’ and ‘being found drunk in a highway or other public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises’), and being drunk when entering a designated sports event by police force area, England and Wales 2007-09 (latest available) is shown in the following tables.
Court proceedings data for 2010 are planned for publication on 26 May 2011.
The information requested on arrests is not collected centrally.
The arrests collection held by the Home Office covers arrests for recorded crime (notifiable offences) only, broken down at a main offence group level, covering categories such as violence against the person and robbery. It is not possible to identify the number of arrests made for alcohol related acts of disorder or violence from the data on arrests reported to the Home Office.
| Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts for being ‘drunk and disorderly’ and being drunk at a designated sports event, by police force area England and Wales 2007 - 09 (1,2,3) | ||||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | |||||||
| of which: | of which: | |||||||
| Police force area | Drunk and disorderly | Being found drunk in a highway or other public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises | Being guilty in any public place, while drunk, of disorderly behaviour | Drunk in, or when entering, a designated sports event | Drunk and disorderly | Being found drunk in a highway or other public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises | Being guilty in any public place, while drunk, of disorderly behaviour | Drunk in, or when entering, a designated sports event |
3 May 2011 : Column 641W
3 May 2011 : Column 642W
| 2009 | ||||
| of which: | ||||
| Police force area | Drunk and disorderly | Being found drunk in a highway or other public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises | Being guilty in any public place, while drunk, of disorderly behaviour | Drunk in, or when entering, a designated sports event |
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3 May 2011 : Column 644W
| (1) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July, and August 2008. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services in the Ministry of Justice | ||||
Crime Prevention: Young People
John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding her Department allocated to Positive Futures in each year since 2008-09; and how much funding she has allocated to that programme in each year for the comprehensive spending review period. [52735]
James Brokenshire: Total Home Office allocations for the Positive Futures programme is as follows:
|
|
£ |
These figures include funding for the management and monitoring and analysis services. Funding for frontline projects of £5.03 million has remained flat since 2008-09. The total budget allocation for 2012-13 has yet to be determined although the intention to provide £5 million funding for frontline projects has been announced.
3 May 2011 : Column 645W
Crimes of Violence
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many and what proportion of incidents of violence against the person resulted in (a) no injuries, (b) a minor bruise or black eye, (c) severe bruising, (d) scratches, (e) cuts, (f) broken bones, (g) a broken nose, (h) broken or lost teeth, (i) concussion and (j) facial or head injuries in each police force area in England and Wales in each year since 1997; [53438]
(2) how many and what proportion of incidents of violence against the person involved (a) a knife, (b) a hitting implement, (c) a glass or bottle, (d) a stabbing implement, (e) a firearm, (f) a stone or stones, (g) a syringe and (h) another implement in each police force area in England and Wales in each year since 2008; [53444]
(3) how many and what proportion of offenders involved in violent incidents were recorded as having been under the influence of (a) drugs and (b) drink in each police force area in each year since 1997. [53484]
James Brokenshire: There are two main sources of official statistics on crime in England and Wales; the British Crime Survey (BCS) and police recorded crime. The information requested is not available by police force area from the BCS; and police recorded crime data, which are available at police force area level, do not generally provide the level of detailed information requested.
Estimates for England and Wales of the number and/or proportion of violent incidents from the BCS since 1997 for (a) injury sustained, (b)weapon used and (c) where the victim believed the offender(s) to be
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under the influence of alcohol or drugs appear in the annual statistical bulletin ‘Crime in England and Wales 2009/10’ (Tables 3.02, 3.09 and 3.20), a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library.
Figures for the number of offences recorded by the police involving firearms (excluding air weapons) by police force area appear in the publication “Homicides, Firearm Offences and Intimate Violence 2009/10” (Table 2.11), a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library. The Home Office has collected data on selected offences involving the use of a knife or sharp instrument via a special additional data collection since April 2007. The data for actual bodily harm (ABH) and Grievous bodily harm (GBH) offences in England and Wales involving a knife or a sharp instrument for 2008-09 and 2009-10 appear in “Crime in England and Wales 2009/10” (Tables 7.13 and 7.14).
The additional information requested is not available by police force area from offences recorded by the police.
Figures from the police recorded crime series for England and Wales since 1997 for all violent offences (including violence against the person), appear in the annual statistical bulletin ‘Crime in England and Wales 2009/10’ (Table 2.04).
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many crimes of violence against the person were recorded in Bury St Edmunds constituency in each of the last five years. [53492]
James Brokenshire: The Home Office collects data on the number of violence against the person offences recorded by police forces in England and Wales but these data cannot be broken down to parliamentary constituency level. Data for each local authority area in Suffolk are shown in the following table.
| Table A: Number of police recorded offences of violence against the person in Suffolk by local authority area, 2005-06 to 2009-10 | |||||
| Local Authority | 2005/06 | 2006/07 | 2007/08 | 2008/09 | 2009/10 |
Departmental Sick Leave
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many days sick leave were taken on average by staff in (a) her Department and (b) the Criminal Records Bureau in each of the last five years. [53454]
Damian Green: Figures given are as at 31 December for each year and Table 1 shows data for:
(a) the Home Department (including Headquarters, United Kingdom Border Agency, Identity and Passport Service, and Criminal Records Bureau); and
(b) Criminal Records Bureau.
Prior to June 2008 figures were reported by Cabinet Office using a different methodology of calculation which means that the figures for 2007 are not directly comparable with those for 2008 onwards. An overall departmental figure for 2006 is not available and to produce it retrospectively would incur a disproportionate cost.
| Table 1: Average working days lost to sickness absence in the Home Department and Criminal Records Bureau 2007-10 | ||
| Average working days lost (days) | ||
|
|
Home Department | Criminal Records Bureau |
3 May 2011 : Column 647W
| Standard: (1) Cabinet Office calculation. A change in the method of calculation between 2007 and 2008 means that data for 2007 are not directly comparable with the rest of the time series shown. Extract date: 31 December for each year shown. Source: 2008-10—Data View: the Department’s single source of monthly HR data, which was introduced from June 2008. 2007—departmental records systems. | ||
Departmental Internet
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what websites her Department operates. [53383]
Damian Green: The Department operates the website
www.homeoffice.gov.uk
which incorporates the websites for the following NDPB’s and public bodies:
Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD)
Animal Procedures Committee (APC)
Criminal Records Bureau (CRB)
Forensic Science Regulator (FSS)
Identity and Passport Service (IPS)
Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA)
Security Industry Authority (SIA)
Technical Advisory Board (TAB)
UK Border Agency (UKBA)
National Refugee Integration Forum (NRIF)
The Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner’s website www.oisc.gov.uk by the end of June 2011.
The Government Equalities Office and the National Fraud Authority have recently become part of the Home Office. The content from these websites will be migrated into the Home Office website or Direct.gov.uk:
3 May 2011 : Column 648W
www.equalities.gov.uk
www.attorneygeneral.gov.uk/nfa and www.actionfraud.org.uk
In addition, a number of websites are operated independently by non-departmental public bodies of the Home Office.
Departmental Manpower
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff of her Department did not achieve an acceptable assessment grade in an annual report in the most recent reporting year for which figures are available. [53464]
Damian Green: 204 staff in the Department (including its executive agencies) did not achieve an acceptable assessment grade in an annual report in the 2009-10 reporting year (the latest year for which figures are available).
Departmental Surveys
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff surveys her Department has undertaken in the last 12 months; and at what cost to the public purse. [53505]
Damian Green: The Home Office participated in one people survey commissioned by the Cabinet Office in the last 12 months. We contributed £58,000 towards the cost of this.
Departmental Telecommunications
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much (a) her Department and (b) its agencies spent on telecommunications in each year since 1997. [53489]
Damian Green: Expenditure for 2004-05 to 2010-11 is set out in the following table.
| Telecommunication expenditure from 2004-05 to 2010-11 | |||||||
| £000 | |||||||
|
|
2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 |
| 1. On 1 April 2008 IPS took over responsibility for the GRO. 2. The 2010-11 figures are unaudited. | |||||||
Records prior to 2004 were held on another, now obsolete financial system. Retrieval will result in disproportionate cost to the Home Office.
The UK Border Agency became an agency of the Home Office in 2009, therefore shown separately from the core Home Office figure for 2009-10 financial year.
The 2010-11 figures are unaudited and may be subject to change.
Departmental Work Experience
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many students from (a) the UK and (b) Bassetlaw constituency have been offered internships in her Department since 8 May 2010. [53210]
Damian Green:
The Home Office and its agencies has offered internships to 20 people since 8 May 2010, 19 as part of the Fast Stream Summer Placements and one
3 May 2011 : Column 649W
Windsor Fellowship. These interns will take up their placements between June and August 2011. These internships relate to the Graduate Fast Stream and are exempt from the recruitment freeze.
None of these is from the Bassetlaw constituency.
Detention Centres: Children
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will consult children’s and refugee charities on appointments to the Family Returns Panel. [52851]
Damian Green: Members of the independent Family Returns Panel will be appointed by means of an open recruitment process in the summer. There are no plans to consult with children’s and refugee charities on the appointment of individual members but the selection criteria will take account of discussions held with a range of interested parties over recent months. In the meantime the current members of the Panel have joined it on an interim basis to get it up and running quickly.
Detention Centres: Families
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children remained in one parent's care while the other parent was detained for immigration purposes (a) in the most recent period and (b) in the last 10 years for which figures are available. [52852]
Damian Green: The information requested is not recorded centrally by the UK Border Agency and could be obtained only through examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost. However, in response to the Family Removals: Thematic Inspection report by the Independent Chief Inspector of the UK Border Agency, the UK Border Agency has committed to improving the management information held on families. The UK Border Agency takes its responsibilities for safeguarding children seriously and where possible ensures that families remain together. Typically, separations would take place only in cases where a member of the family is also a former foreign national prisoner and a decision has been made to maintain their detention pending deportation. Under the new arrangements for managing family returns, families without any criminal history would only be separated in exceptional circumstances and after advice had been sought from the independent Family Returns Panel.
Discrimination
Mr Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many claims for discrimination in respect of (a) sex, (b) race and (c) sexual orientation were brought against the Criminal Records Bureau by its staff in each of the last five years; and how many such claims were settled (i) in court and (ii) out of court in each case. [53490]
Lynne Featherstone: The Criminal Records Bureau has not had any claims of discrimination brought against it by staff employed within the Agency within the last five years.