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Mr Gauke: Generally no tax is due on the repayment element of compensation paid to those mis-sold PPI. However, the additional interest is taxable. Any unpaid tax on payment protection insurance (PPI) interest for the year of approval or earlier will be claimed and compromised within the individual voluntary arrangement (IVA). Any tax due on PPI interest for post voluntary arrangement years will be payable to HMRC on the due date.
Iran
Mr Spellar: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he has given to introducing a temporary lifting of the prohibition on financial transfers by aid agencies to Iran subject to their obtaining a special licence. [121087]
Greg Clark: Under EU sanctions in place against Iran it is already possible for transfers of funds to be made to Iran where the transfer relates to a humanitarian activity or purpose.
In addition, humanitarian transfers between UK credit or financial institutions and Iranian banks are permitted under domestic restrictions where a licence has been issued by HM Treasury.
Following the earthquakes in Iran, HM Treasury published a notice to draw attention to these provisions:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/fin_sanc_iran_ notice_humanitarian_payments_170812.pdf
Child Care
Owen Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many child care places his Department provides on its estate; what the cost is of providing such places; how many such places his Department provided in 2010; what the cost was of providing such places in 2010; what plans he has for changes in the provision of such child care places; and what the number of places will be once any such changes have been implemented. [121268]
Sajid Javid: HM Treasury does not currently offer places for child care on a full-time daily basis at its estate at 1 Horse Guards Road. However, it does provide a holiday play scheme which runs six times a year and has a maximum number of 18 places available each time it is held. These places are also available to some of the other tenants in the building as well as other Departments in Whitehall. The play scheme has been running for a number of years at a cost of up to £5,000 each year. There are no plans to change the number of places offered.
Office for Budget Responsibility
John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when officials in his Department last met the Office for Budget Responsibility. [119096]
Sajid Javid: Officials from HM Treasury meet officials from the Office for Budget Responsibility on a regular and ongoing basis.
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Pay
Philip Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the highest paid position is in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies. [121631]
Sajid Javid: The highest paid positions at HM Treasury are currently:
(a) in the Department, the Head of Assurance of Infrastructure UK (IUK); and
(b) in the Department's agencies, the Chief Executive of the Debt Management Office.
Regulation
Simon Kirby: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer what effect the reduction of red tape is having on the economy; and what legislative plans he has to further reduce regulation to encourage growth. [121517]
Michael Fallon: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The fourth Statement of New Regulation, published in July 2012, reports on the first two years of application of the Government's one-in, one-out rule to new domestic regulation
http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/better-regulation/docs/o/12-p96b-one-in-one-out-fourth-statement-new-regulation.pdf
Copies of the Statement have been deposited in both Libraries of the House.
The Statement shows that the Government's one-in, one-out rule has resulted in an overall reduction in the net cost to business and civil society organisations approaching £850 million.
Recent examples of savings to business which came into force on the 1 October 2012 include:
removing regulatory burdens from hundreds of venues, including pubs and clubs, making it easier for them to stage live music; and
giving over 100,00 more small businesses the flexibility to decide whether or not their company accounts should be audited. The regulations also allow companies that prepare their accounts under International Financial Reporting Standards to move to UK GAPP and take advantage of reduced disclosures.
The Government are continuing to take radical action on red tape to boost growth and jobs in the economy by systematically examining some 6,500 substantive regulations we inherited, through the Red Tape Challenge process. The Government have committed to abolish or substantially reduce at least 3,000 of these regulations. We will complete the identification of the regulations to be scrapped or overhauled by December 2013.
Commitments made through the Red Tape Challenge so far include:
plans to scrap or reduce 85% of health & safety regulations, including:
legislation next month to ensure that businesses will only be held liable for civil damages in health and safety cases if they can be shown to have acted negligently;
binding new rules on both the Health and Safety Executive and on Local Authorities to, from April 2013, exempt hundreds of thousands of low risk businesses from health & safety inspections;
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a radical package of employment tribunal reforms, expected to deliver £40 million of savings per year to employers. The qualifying period for unfair dismissal has already increased from one to two years; and
a portable Criminal Records Bureau check, which employers can view instantly online, will be available from Spring 2013.
Research
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many businesses claimed research and development funding in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10, (c) 2010-11 and (d) 2011-12. [121892]
Mr Gauke: The numbers of companies claiming Research & Development tax credits for financial years up to 2010-11 are published on the HM Revenue & Customs website at
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/corporate_tax/rd-numberofclaims.pdf
Research and Development Tax Credit: Peterborough
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many companies in Peterborough constituency have claimed research and development tax credits for small and medium-sized enterprises in each year since 2005; and if he will make a statement. [121657]
Mr Gauke: This information is not available. The latest statistics on research and development tax credits are available on the HMRC website and include regional analysis of the SME scheme based on where companies are registered. The link to these statistics is provided at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/corporate_tax/randdtcmenu.htm
Revenue and Customs
Nick de Bois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many pieces of correspondence HM Revenue and Customs received from hon. Members did not receive a response for (a) three months, (b) four months, (c) five months, (d) six months and (e) longer than 12 months in (i) 2009, (ii) 2010 and (iii) 2011. [120941]
Mr Gauke: HMRC is aware of the importance that Ministers and Members of Parliament attach to this issue and is running a project to improve the handling of ministerial correspondence. The Department has put in place new processes, including more focused management information from July 2011.
The data HMRC hold from July 2011 to December 2011, for letters directed to HMRC for reply, are shown in the following table:
| Number of months from receipt of letter until reply issued | Number of cases |
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Almost 94% of letters were answered within three months.
Prior to this, information was collected in a database used to track the progress of all complaints correspondence. Interrogating this database shows that we dealt with 99% of letters within three months, but there may be some under-recording of this information due to the overall volume of correspondence received. The information from HMRC's complaints handling database is shown as follows.
| Number of months from receipt of letter until reply issued | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 |
Sovereignty: Scotland
Michael Fabricant: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Government on the continuation of currency union in the event of Scottish independence. [121521]
Danny Alexander: There have been no such discussions between HM Treasury and the Scottish Government.
Stocks and Shares
Mr Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make an assessment of how position limits for the derivative markets could be used to divert capital into productive investment in the real economy. [121662]
Greg Clark: Ex-ante position limits have been proposed on commodity derivative contracts as part of the Commission’s review into the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). The primary aim of position limits is to facilitate orderly markets and prevent market abuse, specifically around the delivery of physically-settled futures contracts. Position limits are not used to divert capital into productive investment in the real economy.
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what representations he has received on the importance of the continued use of over-the-counter derivatives by non-financial companies; [121797]
(2) what assessment he has made of the effect of EU regulations restricting the use of over-the-counter derivatives by non-financial companies. [121798]
Greg Clark: Treasury Ministers and officials have discussions with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. It is not the Government's practice to provide detail of such discussions.
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The Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on OTC derivatives, central counterparties and trade repositories, which was agreed earlier this year, puts in place a new legislative framework for the use of over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives. A key objective of European Markets Infrastructure Regulations is to mitigate systemic risk in the OTC derivatives market by centrally clearing OTC derivative transactions.
The regulation provides an exemption from the clearing obligation for non-financial companies for derivative contracts that are objectively measurable as reducing risk directly related to the commercial activity.
The only restrictions on the use of OTC derivatives by non-financial companies will be when they are used for speculative purposes.
Stocks and Shares: Local Government
John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when and for what purpose his Department barred local government from buying derivatives. [121354]
Greg Clark: My Department has never barred local government from buying derivates. The issue of whether local authorities could lawfully use derivatives was decided in 1991 in the House of Lords (Hazell v. Hammersmith & Fulham London Borough Council) where it was judged to be ultra vires.
Taxation
Dame Anne Begg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what advice he has taken from HM Revenue and Customs on whether users and promoters of schemes closed down retrospectively under section 58 of the Finance Act 2008 were informed that the schemes did not work; [121104]
(2) for what reason section 58 of the Finance Act 2008 was applied retrospectively despite HM Revenue and Customs having previously accepted claims for relief under the affected schemes; and if he will make a statement; [121105]
(3) for what reason HM Revenue and Customs waited over 15 years to abolish the tax planning schemes that were closed down retrospectively through section 58 of the Finance Act 2008. [121106]
Mr Gauke: UK residents are taxable on their worldwide income wherever it arises—including situations where it arises by way of foreign partnerships. Section 58 of Finance Act 2008 was enacted to help put that beyond doubt and, in so doing, made it clear that a wholly artificial tax avoidance scheme involving a foreign partnership comprised of foreign trustees did not work.
As part of HMRC's policy advisory function, advice on various aspects of the introduction of section 58 has been provided, including advice on the communications between HMRC and those affected by its introduction.
The judgment in HMRC's favour following the judicial review of the introduction of section 58 Finance Act 2008 includes the finding that HMRC did not accept the legal interpretation advanced by users of the artificial avoidance scheme and indeed challenged that interpretation.
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HMRC has become aware that inquiries into a small number of returns have been closed in error. HMRC does not consider that this affects the rationale for the introduction of section 58.
HMRC does not recognise the reference to a period of 15 years. As it became increasingly clear that use of this artificial and aggressive scheme was growing rapidly and that significant amounts of tax were involved in a scheme which involved a deliberate attempt to flout the intention of Parliament, the previous Government acted to introduce section 58 to restore fairness and provide certainty for all taxpayers.
Taxation: Aviation
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) in which international forums Ministers of his Department have raised the matter of a per-plane duty since May 2010; [121258]
(2) what meetings Ministers and officials in his Department have held with (a) the aviation industry and (b) other external organisations on the proposals in the 2011 Budget for a per-plane duty; [121243]
(3) pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2012, Official Report, column 519W, on air passenger duty: international comparison, what the response of other countries was to the matters raised at the International Civil Aviation Organisation on a per-plane duty; and if he will make a statement. [121281]
Sajid Javid [holding answer 18 September 2012]: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer I gave on 16 July 2012, Official Report, column 519W.
Treasury Ministers and officials routinely meet with aviation stakeholders to discuss issues of mutual interest.
As made clear previously, we will proceed with proposals for a per-plane duty with only international consensus.
Taxation: Combined Heat and Power
Phil Wilson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect of removing levy exemption certificates on (a) the finance of existing industrial combined heat and power plants and (b) investment in industrial combined heat and power in the next 10 years. [121955]
Sajid Javid: Budget 2011 announced the ending of the exemption from the climate change levy for electricity generated in combined heat and power (CHP) stations and supplied by electricity utilities from 1 April 2013.
CHP levy exemption certificates are used in the administration of this exemption. Budget 2012 announced that such certificates will not be issued for CHP electricity generated on or after 1 April 2013, but electricity utilities will have five years to use up any stockpile of certificates they hold.
This exemption was administratively complex and costly to the taxpayer. The impacts of removing the exemption are set out in the Tax Information and Impact Note published at Budget 2012. This can be found on the HMRC website:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2012/tiin-0700.pdf
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This Government are committed to creating an environment that supports manufacturing within the UK and continues to incentivise CHP overall. The Department of Energy and Climate Change is looking at alternative ways to address barriers to investment in good-quality CHP plants.
Taxation: Fraud
Martin Horwood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to HM Revenue and Customs' Most Wanted Tax Fugitives, published on 16 August 2012, how many of the top 20 most wanted are the subject of a European Arrest Warrant; and if he will make a statement. [121483]
Mr Gauke [holding answer 18 September 2012]: Of the 20 fugitives included in the HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) Tax Fugitives campaign, currently six have had European arrest warrants issued against them.
The remaining 14 fugitives have either:
not yet been traced;
are believed to be UK-based;
are being considered for an European Arrest Warrant;
are believed to be in a non-European Union country.
The campaign has currently (as of Friday 14 September 2012) provided information on 13 of the 20 fugitives.
Unemployment: Peterborough
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people between the age of 16 and 64 years were economically inactive in electoral wards in the Peterborough City Council area on 31 March (a) 2001, (b) 2005 and (c) 2012; and if he will make a statement. [121456]
Mr Hurd: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated September 2012:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many people between the age of 16 and 64 years were economically inactive on 31 March (a) 2001, (b) 2005 and (c) 2012 by electoral ward in the Peterborough City Council area; and if he will make a statement. (121456)(121458)
Estimates for the number of people aged 16 to 64 economically inactive by electoral ward, are produced from the Census. Latest Census data available by electoral ward is for the 2001 Census, data for 2011 Census has yet to be released.
Table 1 shows the number of people aged 16 to 64 economically inactive resident in each electoral ward in Peterborough from the 2001 Census.
Estimates for the number of people aged 16 to 64 economically inactive for Peterborough parliamentary constituency are available from the Annual Population Survey (APS). Earliest data available is for the 12 month APS period January to December 2004.
National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
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| Table 1: Number of economically inactive people aged 16 to 64 resident by electoral wards in Peterborough in 2001 | |
| Aged 16 to 64 | |
| Source: 2001 Census | |
VAT: Listed Buildings
David Morris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department has considered removing full rate VAT on alterations to listed buildings with listed building planning consent; and if he will make a statement. [121951]
Mr Gauke: VAT at the standard rate will be payable on alterations to listed buildings from 1 October 2012. Under transitional arrangements which form part of the legislation, projects will continue to benefit from the zero rate until 30 September 2015 in cases where listed building consent had been applied for before Budget day. The legislation for the removal of the zero rate has only recently been enacted, and so the Treasury has not considered repealing it.
Home Department
Domestic Violence
19. John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to reduce levels of domestic violence against women. [122219]
Mr Jeremy Browne: The Government’s “Call to End Violence Against Women and Girls” action plan sets out our steps to tackle all forms of violence against women, including piloting a domestic violence disclosure scheme, and ring-fencing funding of nearly £40 million until 2015 towards specialist domestic and sexual violence services.
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Olympic and Paralympic Games: G4S
20. Mr McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the role of G4S in providing security for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. [122220]
21. Mr Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she has taken regarding the performance of G4S at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. [122221]
Mrs May: G4S did not deliver its contract with LOCOG in full, but it still made a significant contribution—alongside the police and armed forces personnel—to games security. However, rightly, it will only be paid for the services that it provided and will meet the additional police and military costs that were incurred.
Local Crime Information
22. Nigel Adams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to better inform people about crimes committed in their local area. [122222]
Damian Green: This Government have provided street-level crime maps on the Police.uk website, enabling people to see what crimes have been committed in their local area and what actions the police and courts have taken in response. Later this month, we will start to show names and photographs of individual offenders, along with details of their crime and sentence.
Migration
23. Mark Reckless: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress her Department has made in reducing net migration into the UK. [122223]
Mr Harper: In just over two years this Government have reformed every route of entry to the UK for non-EEA migrants. We have increased the skill level required to come for work, tackled abuse in the student sector and stopped family migrants who cannot financially support themselves coming to the country.
Net migration is falling as a result of these measures.
Anti-slavery Day
24. Mr MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to commemorate Anti-slavery Day 2012. [122224]
Mr Harper: 10 members of the Inter-Department Ministerial Group on Human Trafficking are undertaking a range of activities, on or around Anti-slavery Day, to commemorate this important occasion.
Front-line Policing
Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in which police forces the largest change in front-line police officers has taken place since May 2010. [122218]
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Damian Green: Between March 2010 and March 2012, the total number of front-line officers fell by 6,778. West Midlands police saw the greatest reduction in front-line officer numbers. Over the past year, crime there has fallen by 10%, much more than the national average, proving that what matters is not the number of officers, but how they are deployed and how effective they are at fighting crime.
Animal Experiments
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the answer of 11 November 2009, Official Report, column 435W, on Wickham Research Laboratories: Animal Experiments, whether she now requires licence-holders under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 to obtain her consent before carrying out an animal test for an identified product or substance, where their test is (a) for quality control purposes and (b) other types of regulatory testing; and if she will make a statement. [121779]
James Brokenshire: Before any animal test is carried out under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA), it is a requirement that it must be part of a programme specified in a project licence. No animal tests may be performed under ASPA without this prior consent.
It remains Home Office practice to authorise specified programmes as opposed to individual tests. However, if authority is requested to carry out an animal test where an alternative test, not involving the use of an animal, has been validated and accepted by regulatory bodies in
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international test guidelines, applicants are required to provide evidence as to why the non-animal alternative cannot be used. This evidence would usually be for an identified product or substance or class of products or substances.
Anti-slavery Day
Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans her Department has to mark Anti-slavery Day on 18 October 2012. [120707]
Mr Harper: The Home Office is currently finalising a range of co-ordinated activities for members of the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on human trafficking to mark Anti-slavery Day and to raise awareness.
Assaults on Police: Sick Leave
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many sickness days were taken as a result of assaults on (a) police and (b) community support officers in each police force in each of the last five years. [121995]
Damian Green: The number of working days lost by police officers as a result of sickness due to assaults, by police force area, in each of the last five years, are given in the following table. Figures are provisional and have not been verified by forces.
The number of working days lost by police community support officers as a result of sickness due to assaults is not collected centrally by the Home Office.
| Number of working days lost by police officers as a result of sickness due to assaults by police force area, 2007-08 to 2011-12(1, 2) | |||||
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | |
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| (1) Figures are provisional and have not been verified by forces. (2) Assaults do not have to have taken place during the reporting period as long as the sick leave falls within the year. (3) Data not available. Force was not able to supply data at the time of collection. | |||||
Asylum
Mr Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many legacy asylum cases are currently held by the UK Border Agency. [122053]
Mr Harper: As of 30 June 2012 there were 25,500 live legacy asylum cases and 74,000 cases in the asylum controlled archive (rounded to the nearest 500).
The Case Assurance and Audit Unit (CAAU) will continue to manage the cases taking robust action to trace applicants and conclude cases where new information comes to light which allows cases to be progressed. All the cases in the asylum controlled archive will either have been moved to the live cohort for caseworking or closed by the end of 2012.
Burglary
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reported incidents of household burglary there were in each of the last five years. [122065]
Mr Jeremy Browne: The available information relates to offences of burglary in a dwelling recorded by the police in England and Wales and is given in the table.
| Number of offences of burglary in a dwelling recorded by the police in England and Wales, financial year since 2007-08 | |
| Financial year | Burglary in a dwelling |
| Source: Police Recorded Crime HO/ONS | |
Charities
Steve Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her policy is on the (a) grant to and (b) use by registered charities of funding from her Department for the purposes of advocacy, lobbying or campaigning; and if she will make a statement. [121410]
James Brokenshire: The Home Office makes grants under statute for specific purposes that fulfil the aims and objectives of the Department. Providing a grant to any organisation for the purpose of political advocacy, lobbying or campaigning would not be in line with Home Office policy and is expressly prohibited by the terms and conditions of the standard Home Office grant agreement.
Grants are monitored to ensure that the recipient uses the funding for the purposes specified and complies with the terms and conditions of the grant agreement.
Deportation: Tamils
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the risk to failed Tamil asylum seekers of being tortured by Sri Lankan security services after deportation from the UK; and if she will make a statement. [121927]
Mr Harper: The UK Border Agency does not enforce the return of individuals unless it is safe to do so and when it and the courts are satisfied that the individual has no international protection needs. The agency's decision makers have access to the latest country report and an Operational Guidance Note for Sri Lanka; this helps to ensure that claims for protection are considered in the light of objective information.
Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will review the procedure under which allegations of ill-treatment following forcible return of asylum seekers to Sri Lanka are undertaken by the Migration Delivery Officer. [121608]
Mr Harper: There are no plans to review the current procedure. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Migration Delivery Officer will investigate any specific allegations that an individual returnee has experienced ill-treatment on return from the UK. The Migration Delivery Officer will also pass to the UK Border Agency any general information they may receive which suggests that returnees have been mistreated. This is then used in UK Border Agency country of origin information reports and operational guidance notes to assist the agency's decision makers in considering applications for protection.
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Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Sri Lankan Tamils have been granted protection by the UK after experiencing torture following (a) forcible and (b) voluntary return to Sri Lanka from the UK since May 2009. [121609]
Mr Harper: This information is not held in a format compatible with National Statistics protocols.
However, statistics regarding asylum applications, decisions and removals are published on a quarterly and annual basis and can be viewed on the Home Office website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/immigration-asylum-research/immigration-q2-2012
Domestic Violence
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) incidents and (b) arrests for acts of domestic violence were recorded by each police force in each of the last five years. [121979]
Mr Jeremy Browne: The number of domestic violence incidents, by police force area, for the last five years are given in the following table.
The number of reported domestic violence incidents where an arrest was made related to the incident have been provided within the following table. The Home Office stopped collecting these figures from 2009-10 in response to the Normington review of data burdens on the police.
| Number of reported domestic violence incidents where an arrest was made related to the incident 2007-08 and 2008-09(1) | ||
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
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| n/a = Data not available. Force was not able to supply data at the time of collection. (1) Figures are provisional and have not been verified by forces. Note: Home Office stopped collecting these figures from 2009-10. | ||
Driving Under Influence
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) men and (b) women were arrested for drink driving offences in each police authority in each year since 1997. [122096]
Mr Jeremy Browne: The information requested is not collected centrally by the Home Office.
Entry Clearances: Married People
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date the UK Border Agency's longest outstanding spousal visa application was made. [120930]
Mr Harper: To provide this information would require the examination of individual records, which would incur disproportionate costs.
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many spousal visas are awaiting determination after the expiry of the UK Border Agency's six-months service standard. [120949]
Mr Harper [holding answer 14 September 2012]: The UK Border Agency's standards say that it will process 95% of settlement applications within 12 weeks of the application date, and 100% within 24 weeks of the application date.
In the period January 2012 to June 2012, out of 18,439 spouse/civil partner applications, 54 (0.3%) were awaiting determination after six months.
These data are based on management information. It is provisional and subject to change.
Entry Clearances: Overseas Students
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to help international students affected by the removal of the licence to teach international students at their places of study find new places to study and to provide funding for their studies. [121321]
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Mr Harper [holding answer 18 September 2012]: The UK Border Agency (UKBA) acts in line with the Tier 4 sponsor guidance, which states if it believes that students were actively involved (complicit) in the circumstances which led to the licence being revoked, they immediately cancel their permission to stay in the UK and the student has to leave the UK or face enforced removal.
If UKBA believes that students were not actively involved in the circumstances which led to the licence being revoked, they will generally reduce (curtail) the student's permission to stay in the UK to 60 calendar days. This enables students to find new places to study. UKBA will, however, consider the individual circumstances of the student before reaching a decision on curtailment.
If a student has less than 60 days' permission left, UKBA will not curtail it. If they have not found a new sponsor when their permission expires they will have to leave the UK or face enforced removal.
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of applications for visas from overseas students in higher education assessed by the UK Border Agency was successful in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2011-12 and (d) 2012-13 to date; and if she will make a statement. [121820]
Mr Harper: The UK Border Agency's published data do not distinguish between higher education students and all other students. To provide an accurate answer to the question tabled would require the examination of individual records, which would incur disproportionate costs.
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), will not make a statement on this issue.
The following table is for all student visas resolved and issued, by calendar year, including student visitors and dependants.
| Calendar year | Number resolved | Number issued | Percentage issued |
| Source: Home Office, Immigration stats Statistics April - June 2012, table be.01 | |||
EU Immigration
Mr Spencer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department has made any contingency plans to tackle an increase in EU immigration in the event of changes to the economic management of the Eurozone. [121832]
Mr Harper: The Home Office carries out scenario planning for all possible events which could impact on migration flows from the European Union to the UK. Currently there are no new trends which give cause for concern.
Under EU law, any European national staying in the UK for more than three months must be exercising Treaty rights as a worker, student, self-employed or self-sufficient person.
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Those who are not exercising those rights are required to leave the UK.
EU Justice and Home Affairs
Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations she has received on Protocol 36 of the Treaties of the European Union regarding the UK's ability to opt out in the field of Justice and Home Affairs; and if she will make a statement. [120761]
James Brokenshire [holding answer 13 September 2012]: The Government are currently considering the issue, where a decision would have to be notified by 31 May 2014. We will be listening carefully to the views of interested parties, including law enforcement agencies and others, before taking a final decision.
Forced Marriage
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what timescale she has set for bringing forward legislation on forced marriage. [121800]
Mr Jeremy Browne: The legislation on forced marriage will be brought in as soon as parliamentary time allows.
G4S
Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much G4S has been paid under its Olympics security contract; how much of its management fee has been paid; how much G4S has paid to compensate for the drafting of military personnel to cover security shortfalls; and how much she estimates the Government will pay G4S in total for the Olympics security contract. [121863]
James Brokenshire: The contract for security guarding for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is between G4S and the London Organising Committee (LOCOG) as event organisers. This is subject to ongoing commercial negotiations.
Illegal Immigrants: Employment
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total amount levied for civil penalties in respect of illegal working was in each quarter since April 2008; and what the total amount collected was from April 2008 to the latest date on which figures are available. [121380]
Mr Harper: The total amount levied for civil penalties in respect of illegal working in each quarter since 2008 can be seen in the following table:
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| Note: All the figures given regarding illegal working are sourced from a UK Border Agency management information system which is not quality assured under National Statistics protocols and are subject to change due to internal data quality checking. Figures provided from this source do not constitute part of National Statistics and should be treated as provisional. | ||
The total amount collected between April 2008 and 31 August 2012 is £20.71 million. No payment or recovery action can or will begin until an employers' objection and/or appeal rights have been exhausted. Employers may also apply for a pre-agreed instalment payment plan of up to a 24 month period when paying the penalty.
Illegal Immigrants: West Midlands
Mr Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many illegal working civil penalties were levied in the West Midlands in 2011. [122052]
Mr Harper: Twelve civil penalties were issued to employers of illegal workers during 2011 based on a search of postcode areas within the West Midlands.
The figures provided are sourced from a UK Border Agency management information system which is not quality assured under National Statistics protocols and is subject to change due to internal data quality checking. Figures provided from this source do not constitute part of National Statistics and should be treated as provisional.
Immigration Controls
Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions the e-Passport gates have been switched off (a) because of mechanical failure and (b) due to staff shortages in the last six months. [121021]
Mr Harper: The figures on the number of occasions that the e-Gates have been switched off due to mechanical failure are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost to the taxpayer.
Ports deploy their available staffing resource as appropriate. While e-Gates are an important part of our arrangements at the border there are occasions, such as when a high proportion of non-EEA passengers
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are expected to arrive, when the most effective use of resource is to deploy staff to other forms of clearance. Figures on the number of times this happens are not available centrally.
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the average length of time taken to scan each (a) British and (b) non-British passport at passport control at UK airports. [121513]
Mr Harper: Opening and scanning passports forms one part of the clearance process at UK airports. There are a number of different types of British, EU and non- EU passports. No recent estimate of the average length of time to scan each type has been made.
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any data from the e-Borders programme have been used to produce counts of students entering and exiting the UK; and if not, when she expects e-Borders data to be used to produce such counts. [121860]
Mr Harper: The e-Borders system enables checks to be made on individuals arriving or exiting the UK.
Travel document data that are processed by the system do not identify whether an individual is a student. Overseas students require a visa to study in the UK, although some nationalities require a visa only where they intend to study for more than six months.
UKBA is able to cross-check e-Borders data against other systems to confirm purpose of entry to the UK. However, until e-Borders coverage is sufficiently broad, we will not be in a position to count all departures, including those of students.
e-Borders currently tracks 55% of inbound and outbound passenger movements to and from the UK. This amounts to 68% of all aviation movements and includes 100% of non-EU commercial aviation passengers.
In July, e-Borders commenced work to include international ferry passengers with a plan for full roll-out by 2015.
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign nationals currently residing in the UK are subject to conditions imposed in accordance with Article 27 of EU Directive 2004/58/EC. [122106]
Mr Harper: In accordance with article 27 of the free movement directive (Directive 2004/38/EC), member states may restrict the freedom of movement and residence of European Union citizens and their family members, irrespective of nationality, on grounds of public policy, public security or public health. The directive is transposed into UK law by the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006.
In 2011 the number of EEA nationals or their family members refused the right to reside in the UK was 8,495. A further 1,999 were refused permanent residence. Information relating to 2012 is currently not available. The UK Border Agency does not hold data on the reasons for those refusals.
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London Metropolitan University
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many students affected by the decision to revoke London Metropolitan university's highly trusted status she expects the UK Border Authority to write to in October to inform that they have 60 days to find a new course. [121597]
Mr Harper: The UK Border Agency has advised students previously sponsored by London Metropolitan university, via its website, that they need to find a new sponsor following the decision to revoke London Metropolitan university's sponsor licence.
From 1 October the UK Border Agency will write to all students who were sponsored by London Metropolitan university and have not applied for further leave to remain in the UK with a different sponsor.
As the clearing house set up to enable students to transfer to different sponsors was launched only on 17 September, it is too early to know how many students will have not applied for further leave. Those students may be informed that their leave is reduced to 60 days.
Metal Theft
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many instances of metal theft from a domestic property occurred in each of the last five years. [121711]
Mr Jeremy Browne: It is not possible to provide the level of detail requested. There is no individual crime recording category for the theft of metal which is usually recorded under ‘Other Theft' and includes theft from both domestic and non-domestic property.
The Home Office have reviewed the ‘Other Theft' category of police recorded crime and estimated that there were between 80,000 and 100,000 cases of metal theft out of over 400,000 cases from that crime classification category in England and Wales during 2010-11.
Metropolitan Police: Bahrain
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 10 September 2012, Official Report, column 403W, on Bahrain, for what reasons each deployment of Metropolitan Police officers to Bahrain took place. [122101]
Damian Green: Both deployments were sought to provide advice and assistance to the Bahraini authorities with specific investigations into terrorist attacks or attack planning in Bahrain.
Morecambe and Lunesdale: Funding
David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding her Department has allocated to Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency since 2010. [121965]
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James Brokenshire: The Home Office accounting system does not record expenditure at this level of detail.
Ministerial Visits: Nottinghamshire
Mr Spencer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what ministerial visits to (a) the City of Nottingham and (b) Nottinghamshire have taken place since May 2010. [121764]
James Brokenshire: Home Office Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.
Olympic Games 2012
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether (a) Ministers and (b) officials from her Department used the Olympic route network for travel for official purposes during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. [121006]
James Brokenshire: The Home Secretary used the Olympic route network (ORN) for games-related official business under the terms of her games accreditation but details of such journeys are not recorded. The ORN was not used for official purposes by any other Minister or official.
Olympic Games 2012: Security
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost to the public purse has been of employing additional police and army personnel during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. [119053]
James Brokenshire: The security of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is an ongoing operation. G4S has made it clear that it will bear any additional military and policing costs arising from failure to meet its contractual obligations.
Pay
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the highest paid position is in (a) her Department and (b) her Department's agencies. [121630]
James Brokenshire: As part of the Government's transparency agenda, the Department is required to publish information on senior staff along with departmental organograms.
This information includes the names, job titles and salaries of staff at director level and above and is published on the Home Office website on a six-monthly basis.
The following link provides the most recent update as at 31 March 2012:
http://www.data.gov.uk/organogram/home-office
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Police
Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the change in the number of frontline police officers has been since May 2010. [121664]
Damian Green: Figures collected by the Home Office show there were 119,154 frontline police officers as at 31 March 2010 and 112,377 as at 31 March 2012 (full-time equivalents). Definitions of frontline policing are based on Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary's definition for 2011 within the Adapting to Austerity report and use the data collected in the Home Office Annual Data Requirement return.
Police and Crime Commissioners
Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which police force areas have agreed arrangements for police and crime panels. [119647]
Damian Green: Local authorities in England outside London are responsible for agreeing police and crime panel arrangements. All 37 force areas in England have notified the Home Office that panel arrangements are in place. In Wales the Secretary of State for the Home Department is responsible for making panel arrangements. The required number of councillors have been nominated to all four of the police force areas in Wales.
Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many shadow police and crime panels have been established; and in what areas such panels have been established. [119791]
Damian Green:
Local authorities in England are responsible for establishing police and crime panels (PCPs). Local authorities in all of the 37 areas in
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England have notified the Home Office that panel arrangements have been made and the required number of councillors appointed. In Wales the Secretary of State for the Home Department is responsible for the establishment of police and crime panels. Welsh local authorities were invited to develop panel arrangements and nominate councillors. The required number of councillors has been nominated to the PCPs for the four police force areas in Wales.
Police Custody: Photographs
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she has taken steps to revise her Department's policy on the retention of custody photographs following the judgment in R (RMC and FJ) v Metropolitan Police Commissioner dated 22 June 2012. [121993]
Damian Green: The Home Office is giving careful consideration to this judgment, together with the Metropolitan Police Service and the Association of Chief Police Officers. The judgment raises several issues relating to the retention of records by the police and responses will be developed as soon as possible.
Police: Finance
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many letters her Department has received about future funding for the (a) Metropolitan police and (b) British Transport police in each month of (i) 2011-12 and (ii) 2012-13 to date; and if she will make a statement. [121852]
Damian Green: The number of letters received by the Department about future funding for the Metropolitan police is shown in the following table. The Department does not deal with policing matters for the British Transport police; this is an issue for the Department for Transport.
| Fiscal year | Month received | Number of letters about future Metropolitan police funding | Type of response |
Police: Greater London
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) police community support officers and (b) police officers there were in (i) Richmond upon Thames, (ii) Waltham Forest and (iii) Haringey on 5 April (A) 2010, (B) 2011 and (C) 2012; and if she will make a statement. [121633]
Damian Green: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 574W.
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) police community support officers and (b) police officers there were in each London borough as at 31 March (i) 2010 and (ii) 2011; and if she will make a statement. [121850]
Damian Green: Figures were collected by the Home Office for the number of police community support officers and police officers within each London borough, as at 31 March 2010 and 31 March 2011, and are given in the following table.
| Police community support officer and police officer strength within each London borough as at 31 March 2010 and 31 March 2011(1, 2) | ||||
| Police community support officers | Police officers | |||
| 31 March 2010 | 31 March 2011 | 31 March 2010 | 31 March 2011 | |
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| (1) These figures are based on full-time equivalents that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. (2) Figures include those officers on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. | ||||
Police: Misconduct
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many chief police officers have been suspended for (a) misconduct and (b) gross misconduct in England and Wales in the 12 months prior to 15 September 2012. [121672]
Damian Green: The available information is for the number of ACPO rank police officers on suspension, as at 31 March 2011, 30 September 2011 and 31 March 2012 in England and Wales. On each of these dates respectively, zero, four and four ACPO rank police officers had been suspended for more than 28 calendar days. The Home Office does not hold data for officers who were suspended for less that 28 days. Reasons behind these suspensions are a matter for the police authorities.