The work of the UK Border Agency (October-December 2012)

Letter from the Chair of the Committee to Rob Whiteman, Chief Executive, UK Border Agency, 7 January 2013 (UKBA Q4 01)

As part of the Committee’s ongoing inquiry into the work of the UK Border Agency I attach a data request covering the fourth quarter of 2012.

I would be grateful if you could make every effort to respond to the attached questions by 6pm on Thursday 28 February.

DATA REQUEST COVERING THE WORK OF THE UK BORDER AGENCY IN Q4 2012

Q1 2012 is defined as the period 1st January –31st March 2012

Q2 2012 is defined as the period 1st April –30th June 2012

Q3 2012 is defined as the period 1st July –30th September 2012

Q4 2012 is defined as the period 1st October –31st December 2012

FOREIGN NATIONAL OFFENDERS (FNOS) AND EX-FOREIGN NATIONAL OFFENDERS (EX-FNOS)

1. For Q4 2012 please provide a breakdown for the status of the 2006 cohort of ex-FNOs released without consideration for deportation.
2. What percentage of FNOs who entered the prison system in Q4 2012 were referred to the UKBA within 5 days of sentencing?
3. What percentage of FNOs who entered the prison system between 1 October 2012 and the 1 December 2012 were referred to the UKBA within 30 days of sentencing?
4. How many FNOs were released from prison or transferred from prison to immigration detention in Q4 2012?
5. How many of the FNOs released from prison in Q4 2012 were not considered for deportation?
6. How many of the FNOs released in Q4 2012 who were eligible for deportation were:	Deported?
	given leave to remain?
	cases remain outstanding at end of Q4 2012?
7. Please provide a breakdown of the cases that remained "outstanding" at the end of Q4 2012
8. How many detained FNOs facing removal or deportation could not be removed at the end of Q4 2012? Please provide a breakdown by the reason they could not be removed.
9. How many detained FNOs facing removal or deportation had been waiting 12 months or more for a travel document to enable their removal in Q4 2012?
10. Please provide the number and percentage of failed removals in Q4 2012
11. How many ex-FNOs who are subject to deportation were living in the community at the end of Q4 2012?
12. Please provide a breakdown for the length of time since release for ex-FNOs living in the community at the end of Q4 2012
13. What is the current status of the 3 ex-FNOs (from the cohort of 28 released without consideration for deportation in 2010–2011) that remained untraced at the time of the Committee’s last enquiry?
14. What percentage of FNO conclusions were removed under the Early Removal and Facilitated Returns Schemes in Q4 2012?
15. What was the average time it took to deport an ex-FNO in Q4 2012?

CAAU AND THE MIGRATION REFUSAL POOL

16. Please fill in the tables below for Q4 2012

<?oasys [pf10p0] ?>SIZE OF THE "LIVE COHORTS"

	Net no of cases at the beginning of the quarter	Number of cases that left the live cohort	Number of cases that entered the live cohort	Net no of cases at the end of the quarter
Asylum live cohort
Immigration live cohort

SIZE OF THE MIGRATION REFUSAL POOL

	Net no of records at the beginning of the quarter	Number of records that left the pool	Number of records that entered the pool	Net no of records at the end of the quarter
Migration Refusal Pool

17. How many records in the Migration Refusal Pool were assessed in Q4 2012?
18. Of the Migration Refusal Pool records assessed in Q4 2012 how many were found to:	Relate to individuals who had left the UK?
	Relate to individuals who were living in the UK with leave to do so?
	Relate to individuals who were living in the UK without leave to do so?
19. At the end of Q4 2012 how many of the concluded cases in the asylum backlog:	had been granted permanent leave to remain
	had been granted limited leave to remain
	had been removed from the UK
	were found to be duplicates
	were found to be deceased
20. At the end of Q4 2012 how many of the concluded cases in the immigration backlog:	had been granted permanent leave to remain
	had been granted limited leave to remain
	had been removed from the UK
	were found to be duplicates
	were found to be deceased
21. How many FTE staff were employed to work in the CAAU at the end of Q4 2012?

IMMIGRATION

SPONSORS AND LICENSING

22. How many sponsors were there in a) Tier 2 b) Tier 4 and c) Tier 5 at the beginning of Q4 2012?

23. How many new sponsor applications were made in a) Tier 2 b) Tier 4 and c) Tier 5 in Q4 2012?

24. How many new sponsor applicants in a) Tier 2, b) Tier 4 and c) Tier 5 received a pre-registration visit in Q4 2012?

25. How many follow up visits were made to sponsors in a) Tier 2, b) Tier 4 and c) Tier 5 in Q4 2012?

26. How many of the follow up visits made to a) Tier 2 b) Tier 4 and c) Tier 5 were unannounced in Q4 2012?

27. What percentage of Tier 4 Sponsors had Highly Trusted Sponsorship status at the end of Q4 2012?

28. Please provide a breakdown by the length of time it took to process applications for sponsors in a) Tier 2 b) Tier 4 and c) Tier 5 in Q4 2012?

29. What was the average length of time taken to process a sponsorship application in Q4 2012?

30. How many sponsorship applications took longer than the average length of time to process in Q4 2012?

31. What was the maximum length of time taken to process a sponsorship application in Q4 2012?

OUT OF COUNTRY VISA APPLICATIONS

32. What percentage of out of country visa applications, in each PBS Tier, were processed within the Agency’s Service Standards in Q4 2012?
33. What were the number of cases in "Work in Progress" on the 31 December 2012 for both temporary and permanent out of country visa applications broken down by case type (family, work, study, visit) ?
34. Of the applications for refugee/humanitarian family reunion decided in Q4 2012 what was the	Average time from receipt of application to the applicants being notified of the decision on the application
	Maximum time from receipt of application to the applicants being notified of the decision on the application
	Minimum time from receipt of application to the applicants being notified of the decision on the application
35. Of the applications for refugee/humanitarian family reunion still pending at the end of Q4 2012 a) what percentage and b) how many have been outstanding for	More than 6 months
	More than 1 year

IN-COUNTRY VISA APPLICATIONS

36. What percentage of in-county visa applications, in each PBS Tier, were processed within the Agency’s Service Standards in Q4 2012?

37. What were the number of cases in "Work in Progress" on the 31 December 2012 for both temporary and permanent in-country visa applications broken down by case type (family, work, study, visit)?

ENFORCEMENT

38. How many Illegal Working Civil Penalties were issued to employers between 1 October 2012 and 1 December 2012?
39. Of the employers issued with Illegal Working Civil Penalties between 1 October 2012 and 1 December 2012 how many have now:	paid the civil penalty in full?
	asked the civil penalty compliance team for permission to pay the civil penalty in monthly instalments?
	submitted an objection to the civil penalty compliance team against the service of the civil penalty?
	lodged an appeal against the service of the civil penalty to the appropriate court?
40. How many carriers were issued with a Notification of Demand for Payment Form IS80D between 1 October 2012 and 1 December 2012?
41. How many carriers issued with a Notification of Demand for Payment Form IS80D between 1 October 2012 and 1 December 2012 have now:	paid the charge in full?
	objected to the Inspector at the Carriers Liaison Section at the UKBA?
	lodged an appeal against the charge at the appropriate court?
42. In Q4 2012 how many Sponsor Notifications regarding potential non compliance were received from sponsors in	Tier 2
	Tier 4
	Tier 5
43. Please provide a breakdown of how many Tier 2, 4 and 5 sponsors	had their licenses suspended in Q4 2012
	had their licenses revoked in Q4 2012

APPEAL TRIBUNALS

44. In Q3 2012, for each category of First Tier Tribunal cases please provide a breakdown of the number of appeals that were	allowed
	dismissed
	withdrawn
45. In Q3 2012 how many deportation appeals were	allowed
	dismissed
	withdrawn
46. A what percentage of a) First Tier Tribunal, b) Upper Tier Tribunal, c) Deportation and d) all appeal hearings was the UKBA represented in Q4 2012?
47. In Q3 2012 how many a) First Tier, b) Upper Tier and c) Deportation cases were granted leave to remain subsequent to an appeal’s being withdrawn? Please provide a breakdown by case type.
48. Please update us on the performance of UKBA against the targets in its Appeals Improvement Plan over Q4 2012

MPS’ CORRESPONDENCE

49. What % of further action referrals were completed within service standards in Q4 2012?

50. What % of MPs’ emails were answered within service standards in Q4 2012?

CHILD DETENTION

51. How many children entered immigration detention in Q4 2012?

IMMIGRATION DETENTION

52. In how many cases brought against the Home Office in Q4 2012 was a person held in immigration detention found to have suffered a breach of their rights under Article 3 of the ECHR?

53. What was the overall cost of detaining people who left immigration detention in Q4 2012 and were subsequently granted leave to enter the UK?

54. How much did it cost per day to hold an individual in immigration detention in Q4 2012?

55. How many reports under Rule 35 were made by a medical practitioner to the UKBA about individuals in immigration detention in Q4 2012?

56. Please provide a breakdown of the number of reports made by a medical practitioner under Rule 35 in Q4 2012 by institution?

57. How many reports made by a medical practitioner to the UKBA under Rule 35 in Q4 2012 resulted in the individuals in question being released from immigration detention?

INTELLIGENCE

58. How many allegations of suspected illegal entry or continued residence in the UK were received in Q4 2012?

59. Please provide a breakdown of the outcomes of allegations of suspected illegal entry or continued residence in the UK received in Q4 2012.

ASYLUM

60. How many persons seeking asylum were recognised as refugees or given humanitarian protection by the UK in Q4 2012 following a previously unsuccessful claim and forcible removal from the UK ?
61. Please provide a breakdown by nationality for all such persons in Q4 2012
62. How many Azure cards were in use in the UK in Q4 2012?
63. How many support enquiries connected to Azure cards were made to a) UKBA and b) Sodexho Limited in:	Q1 2012
	Q2 2012
	Q3 2012
	Q4 2012

STAFF NUMBERS AND REMUNERATION

64. How many FTE employees were working at UKBA at the end of Q4 2012?

65. Please provide a full breakdown of FTEs by group within the UKBA for Q4 2012?

66. How much did the Agency pay to external consultants in Q4 2012?

LOST DOCUMENTS

67. Please provide a breakdown by type of document of the number of applicant documents that the UKBA lost in a) Q1 2012 b) Q2 2012 c) Q3 2012 d) Q4 2012

Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP,
Chair of the Home Affairs Committee

7 January 2013

Letter from Rob Whiteman, Chief Executive, UK Border Agency, to the Chair of the Committee, 28 February 2013

Thank you for your letter of 7 January requesting information ahead of my appearance before the Committee next month.

Answers to the Committee’s questions can be found below. Please note that the majority of figures quoted are management information. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols.

I look forward to discussing this with you at my evidence session.

Rob Whiteman
Chief Executive, UK Border Agency

FOREIGN NATIONAL OFFENDERS (FNO) (Questions 1-15)

1. The table below provides a breakdown of the status of the 2006 cohort of 1,013 FNOs released without consideration for deportation, as at the end of quarter four 2012:

	Cases concluded	Of which removed/deported	Of which not removed	Going through deportation process	Serving custodial sentence	Not located	Total
At end Q4 2012	865	409	456	89	12	47	1,013

2. A further eight cases from this cohort were concluded in quarter four 2012, four of which were removed.

3. Data systems across Government departments do not currently enable us to provide information on what proportion of FNOs were referred by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) to the UK Border Agency within specific times. The Home Office and Ministry of Justice are working on approaches to make this simpler. In the meantime we continue to sample cases and a further sample has taken place for cases up to 21 September 2012 which showed that 33% of cases were referred to the Agency by NOMS within five days of sentencing, although almost 80% of referrals are received within 30 days, and there is a separate process for referring cases where release is imminent. We have introduced a back up system to check newly sentenced cases within the first few weeks of their sentence to ensure that a referral has been received.

4. With regard to the cohort of 28 FNOs released without consideration for deportation in 2010–11, three remained untraced. We are continuing to attempt to trace these individuals and their details have been circulated on the Police National Computer stating that the UK Border Agency should be contacted if they are encountered. All three cases have been referred to Operation Nexus [1] for ongoing enhanced database subscription checks: all relevant applications from the individuals will automatically generate a "hit" notification to the Metropolitan Police, who will notify the UK Border Agency. All were convicted of offences in the "other" category-the least serious category of offence.

5. The table on the next page shows the number of FNOs released from prison, transferred into immigration detention and released without consideration for deportation in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Released from prison	734
Transferred in to immigration detention	1,010
Released without consideration for deportation	1

6. Since my letter of 6 December 2012 it has come to light that a further two individuals were released from prison without consideration for deportation in quarters one and two of 2012. The individual released in quarter one was convicted of an offence in the "more" category [2] , the two other individuals, including the one released in quarter four, were convicted of "other" offences. None of the individuals is currently detained.

7. The table below shows the status of the FNOs eligible for deportation released from prison in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Deported	*
Concluded [1]	17
Outstanding	343
Total	362

*Less than five

8. The table below shows a breakdown of the status of the outstanding cases:

	Q4 2012
Being caseworked [1]	143
Legal issues [1]	142
Removal issues [1]	50
Other [1]	8
Total	343

9. Note these figures refer to FNO cases outstanding at the end of the same quarter in which they were released. Some will have been released late in that quarter and so while they remain outstanding they may have only been so for a short period of time.

10. The table below shows the number of detained FNOs facing removal or deportation who could not be removed at the end of quarter four 2012, broken down by primary barrier to removal:

Primary barrier	Total
Challenge to deportation [1]	195
Asylum claim or refugee status	25
Children issues [1]	5
Country situation prohibits removal	12
Emergency Travel Document (ETD) required-individual compliant but ETD awaited	52
ETD required-country non-compliant	30
ETD required-individual non-compliant	123
Further criminal proceedings	7
Further representations or Judicial Review	39
Medical reasons [1]	5
Nationality not confirmed	11
Awaiting removal	1 [1]
Total	505

11. The table below shows the number of detained FNOs who had been waiting 12 months or more for a travel document to enforce their removal, and the number of FNOs subject to deportation action living in the community, at the end of quarter four 2012:

	End of Q4 2012
FNOs waiting 12 months or more for a travel document to enforce removal	106
FNOs subject to deportation action living in the community [1]	4,102

12. The table below shows details of failed removals of FNOs, and the average time taken to remove an FNO, in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Number of failed removal attempts	208
Percentage of total removal attempts	15%
Average time (in days) taken to deport [1]	127

13. Note this relates to removal attempts, not individuals. One individual may account for multiple failed removals, and in most instances individuals involved in failed removals are successfully removed at a later date.

14. The table below shows a breakdown of the length of time since release of the FNOs living in the community at the end of quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Less than six months	374
Less than 12 months	392
Less than 24 months	625
More than 24 months	1,572
More than 60 months	1,092
Data quality issues [1]	47
Total	4,102

15. The table below shows the percentage of FNO removals that were made during their Early Release Scheme (ERS) period and under the Facilitated Returns Scheme (FRS) in quarter four 2012. [3]

	Q4 2012
ERS	42%
FRS	36%

ASYLUM AND IMMIGRATION CASELOAD (16-21)

16. Due to the way we record our data, I am unable to provide figures exactly in the format requested. The table below shows the number of cases in the asylum and migration live cohorts at the end of the month specified (figures are to the nearest 500):

	September 2012	19 November 2012 (controlled archive closure report)	December 2012
Live asylum cohort	28,500	34,000	33,500
Migration live cohort	4,000	7,000	7,000

17. The table below shows a breakdown of the outcomes of the total (since April 2011) concluded asylum legacy cases as at the end of quarter four 2012 (rounded to the nearest 100):

	Conclusion total at end of Q4 2012
Grant (permanent)	3,400
Grant (temporary)	5,500
Removal	4,400
Duplicate	2,700
Deceased	100
Total	16,100

<?oasys [np ?>18. The table below shows a breakdown of the outcomes of the total (since April 2011) concluded migration legacy cases as at the end of quarter four 2012 (rounded to the nearest 100):

	Conclusions total at the end of Q4 2012
Grant (permanent)	600
Grant (temporary)	500
Removal	800
Duplicate	500
Deceased	*
Total	2,400

* Negligible (50 or less)

19. The table below shows the number of Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff employed to work in the Case Audit and Assurance Unit (CAAU) at the end of quarter four 2012:

	End of Q4 2012
FTE employed in CAAU (including agency staff)	230

Migration Refusal Pool

20. The table below shows details of the number of records in the Migration Refusal Pool (MRP) over quarter four 2012:

	Net number of records at the beginning of Q4 2012	Number of records that left the pool during Q4 2012	Number of records that entered the pool during Q4 2012	Net number of records at the end of Q4 2012
MRP	181,541	28,563	37,637	190,615

21. In quarter four 2012 Capita assessed 24,936 records in the MRP to determine whether they were suitable for contact. The contact management aspect of this work commenced on 12 December and therefore there are no figures available for the outcomes of this work before 31 December. Capita provides operational management information regularly, which we assure against our own management information. We will provide you with quarterly updates (starting in my next quarterly letter) broken down into the following key performance indicators:

¾ The number of cases assessed by Capita;

¾ The number of cases shown as having departed from the UK;

¾ The number of cases in which there is a barrier to removal (including an outstanding application) and the case passed to back to UKBA to progress;

The number of cases where the outcome is that no contact can be made with the individual.

SPONSORS AND LICENSING (22-31)

22. The table below shows the number of sponsors registered at the beginning of quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Tiers 2 and 5 [1]	25,400
Tier 4	1,983

23. The table below shows the number of sponsor applications made in each Tier in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Tier 2	1,748
Tier 4 [1]	59
Tier 5	105

<?oasys [np ?>24. The table below shows the number of new sponsor applicants in each Tier that received a pre-registration visit in quarter four 2012:

	Pre-registration visits
Tier 2	194
Tier 4	15
Tier 5	4
Tiers 2 and 5 [1]	6

25. The table below shows the number of follow up visits made to sponsors in each Tier in quarter four 2012, and the number of these that were unannounced:

	Follow up visits	Unannounced follow up visits
Tier 2	1,366	462
Tier 4	281	150
Tier 5	80	9
Tiers 2 and 4	35	4
Tiers 2 and 5	51	10

26. At the end of quarter four 2012 82% of Tier 4 sponsors had Highly Trusted Sponsor status.

27. The table below shows the time taken to process sponsor applications in each Tier in quarter four 2012:

	Four weeks or less	More than four weeks
Tier 2	87%	13%
Tier 4	85%	15%
Tier 5	87%	13%

28. The table below shows the average and maximum time taken to process a sponsor application in quarter four 2012 [4] :

	Q4 2012
Average	17 calendar days
Maximum	276 calendar days [1]
Applications that took longer than average to process	1,766

29. The time taken to process an application may be extended for a number of reasons, including awaiting the outcome of investigations by other government departments and agencies. Where an institution that applies for a sponsor licence is under investigation by, for example, the police, we will co-operate fully. Additionally our decision may rest upon the outcome of these external investigations which we have no power to accelerate.

VISA APPLICATIONS (32-37)

30. The table below shows the percentage of visa applications processed within the Agency’s service standards in quarter four 2012:

	15 days (target: 90%)	30 days (target: 98%)	60 days (target: 100%)
Tier 1	86%	98%	100%
Tier 2	94%	99%	100%
Tier 4	87%	98%	100%
Tier 5	96%	100%	100%

31. The table below shows the number of visa applications in progress as at the end of quarter four 2012 broken down by case type:

Category	Work in progress
EEA Family Permits	436
Family Visit	4,740
Other Non-Settlement	747
Other Visitor	22,938
PBS Tier 1	553
PBS Tier 2	1,550
PBS Tier 4	5,401
PBS Tier 5	615
Student	8
Transit	191
Work permit	19
Non-Settlement Total	37,198
Settlement	6,997
Out of country total	44,195

32. The Agency receives around 2.6 million visa applications a year so this figure represents less than a week’s intake.

33. The table below shows the average, maximum and minimum length of time between receipt of an application for refugee/humanitarian family reunion and the applicant being notified of the decision in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Average	46 days
Maximum	321 days [1]
Minimum	1 day

34. The table below shows the number and percentage of applications for refugee/humanitarian family reunion still pending at the end of quarter four 2012 that had been pending for more than six months:

	Pending six to 12 months	Pending over 12 months [1]
Number	34	357
Percentage	3%	26%

35. The table below shows the proportion of in-country visa applications that were processed within the Agency’s service standards in quarter four 2012:

	Postal applications in four weeks (target: 90%)	Premium applications in 24 hours (target: 90%)
Tier 1	10%	79%
Tier 2	86%	68%
Tier 4	21% (target: 85%)	68%
Tier 5	79%	88%

36. The table on the next page shows the number of in-country visa applications in progress at the end of quarter four 2012 for both temporary and permanent migration broken down by case type:

Category	Work in progress
Family	28,760
Tier 1 (including post study work)	11,145
Tier 2/5	2,903
Tier 4	33,083
Bulgarian and Romanian Caseworking	4,019
European Community Association Agreement	1,913
Sponsor (pre-licence)	749
Sponsor (post-licence)	2,913
Sponsor (highly trusted sponsorship)	0
Sponsor (renewals)	32
Temporary-total	85,517
Permanent residence	30,134
European casework	31,180
British citizenship	17,662
Permanent-total	78,976

37. In addition, on 31 December 2012 there were 48,857 temporary migration and 12,246 permanent migration cases awaiting input on to our systems.

ENFORCEMENT (38–43)

38. The table below shows the number of civil penalties that were issued to employers, the number that have now paid the civil penalty in full, the number that have asked the civil penalty compliance team for permission to pay the civil penalty in monthly instalments, the number that have submitted an objection to the civil penalty compliance team against the service of the civil penalty, and the number that have lodged an appeal against the service of the civil penalty to the appropriate court between 1 October and 1 December 2012:

	Issued	Paid	Requested to pay in instalments	Objected	Appealed
Civil penalties	171	36	23	65	5

39. The table below shows the number of carriers that were issued with a Notification of Demand for Payment Form IS80D, the number that have now paid the charge in full, the number that have objected to the Inspector at the Carriers Liaison Section and the number that have lodged an appeal against the charge between 1 October and 1 December 2012:

	Issued	Paid	Objected	Appealed
Carriers	294	121	25	0

40. The table on the next page shows the number of sponsor notifications regarding non-compliance received in quarter four 2012:

	Notifications in a potential non-compliance category [1]
Tier 2	5,964
Tier 4	28,962
Tier 5	646

41. The table below shows the number of sponsors that had their licences suspended or revoked in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
	Suspended	Revoked
Tier 2	209	170
Tier 4	80	62
Tier 5	16	7

APPEAL TRIBUNALS (44–48) [5]

42. The table below shows the number of First-tier Tribunal disposals (determined, withdrawn and struck out) in quarter three 2012:

First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber)	Disposals	Determined [1]	Withdrawn	Struck out [1]
Asylum	2,800	2,500	270	0
Managed Migration	7,200	6,000	810	400
Entry Clearance	4,600	3,400	1,100	38
Family Visit Visa	5,800	3,600	2,100	130
Deportation	230	220	14	0

<?oasys [np ?>43. The table below breaks down the number of First-tier Tribunal determined appeals by those allowed and dismissed in quarter three 2012:

First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber)	Determined	Allowed	Dismissed
Asylum	2,500	770	1,800
Managed Migration	6,000	3,100	2,900
Entry Clearance	3,400	1,800	1,700
Family Visit Visa	3,600	1,600	2,000
Deportation	220	49	170

44. The table below shows the number of First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal [6] disposals of deportation appeals (determined, withdrawn and struck out) in quarter three 2012:

Deportation appeals	Disposals	Determined	Withdrawn	Struck out [1]
First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber)	230	220	14	0
Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber)	26	26	0	0

45. The table below breaks down the number of determined Deportation appeals in the First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal by those allowed, dismissed and remitted in quarter three 2012:

Deportation appeals	Determined	Allowed	Dismissed	Remitted
First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber)	220	49	170	N/A
Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber)	26	10	15	*

*Less than five

46. The table below shows the percentage of appeals at which the UK Border Agency was represented in quarter four 2012:

	Representation rate
First-tier Tribunal	93%
Upper Tribunal	100%
Deportation	100%
All appeal hearings	94%

47. The table below shows the number of cases where leave to remain was granted in quarter three 2012 following an appeal being withdrawn:

	Asylum	Deport	Human Rights	Permanent migration	Temporary migration	Total
First-tier	29	10	5	26	123	193
Upper Tribunal	2	0	0	6	8	16
Total	31	10	5	32	131	209

48. Please see below an update on our performance against targets in the Appeals Improvement Plan:

BUNDLING PERFORMANCE

49. We aim to get appeal bundles to courts by target timescales which are in advance of the appeal hearing. Ministry of Justice (MoJ) management information indicates performance against these timescales has improved on performance in 2011/12 financial year (63%). Performance in July to September 2012 was 75%.

REPRESENTATION

50. The UK Border Agency continues to achieve a 100% representation rate in the Upper Tribunal and at Deportation appeals.

51. Management information suggests that performance in the First-tier Tribunal has continued to improve. Between October and December we achieved a 93% representation rate, compared to 76% between April and June and 88% between July and September. This improvement is due to:

¾ Recruitment into the presenting role and;

¾ Sharing staff resource between regional offices to meet hearing volumes.

APPEAL OUTCOMES

52. MoJ published statistics show that over the three month period July to September the UK Border Agency won 54% of all appeals at the First-tier Tribunal and 70% of asylum appeals. The win rate in 2011/12 was 55% (71% for asylum appeals).

REDUCING APPEAL VOLUMES

53. Appeal volumes continue to reduce. MoJ published statistics show that in 2010/11 there were 136,800 appeals compared to 112,500 in 2011/12. Between July and September there were 23,800 appeals, compared to 32,200 in the same period the previous year.

MPS’ CORRESPONDENCE (49–50)

54. The table on the next page shows the percentage of further action referrals that were completed within service standard and the percentage of MPs’ emails that were answered within service standard in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Further action referrals	56%
MPs’ emails	84%

DETENTION (51–57)

55. 54 children entered immigration detention in quarter four 2012.

56. It is not possible to provide definitive information on the number of people held in immigration detention found to have suffered a breach of Article 3 of the European Convention of Human Rights due to multiple grounds of challenge and the fact that cases are managed separately by different business areas.

57. The total cost of detaining people who entered immigration detention and were subsequently granted leave to enter or leave to remain in the UK in quarter four 2012 was £190,944.

58. The fact that an individual detained by UKBA is subsequently granted leave does not necessarily mean that the decision to detain was incorrect. In many cases new information is provided at a later stage that alters the individual’s status, whilst in others an individual may enter detention for their own safety while a final decision is made on their case.

59. The cost of detaining an individual in immigration detention is £102 per day. This value is based on the total cost of running the detention estate on a per bed, per day basis.

60. The table below shows the number of reports under Rule 35 that were made to UKBA about individuals in immigration detention, and the number of these that resulted in the individual being released, in quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
Rule 35 reports	354
Rule 35 reports resulting in release	39

61. The table below shows a breakdown of the number of reports made under Rule 35 in quarter four 2012 by institution:

	Q4 2012
Brook House IRC	33
Campsfield House IRC	11
Cedars PDA	0
Colnbrook IRC	42
Dover IRC	37
Dungavel IRC	9
Harmondsworth IRC	53
Haslar IRC	12
Larne House	0
Morton Hall IRC	27
Pennine House	0
Tinsley House	31
Yarlswood IRC	96
HMP Belmarsh	*
HMP Wandsworth	*
Stanmore Hospital	*

*Less than five

INTELLIGENCE (58–59)

62. In quarter four 2012 the UK Border Agency received 20,142 allegations.

63. The Allegation Management System (AMS) went live on 30 September 2012. Quarter four data is a combination of AMS and manual returns. AMS data provides a breakdown of the type of immigration and smuggling crimes which the public report; the chart below shows this for Q4 2012. This data is the public’s perception of the crime that they are reporting and does not necessarily reflect any actual offence committed.

030026_img001_folio19.eps

64. Full AMS management information (MI) reporting is being launched in early February and this will allow us to provide data on outcome by allegation type. At present the combination of AMS MI and the manual data previously provided is not considered sufficiently robust to provide to the Committee but once full AMS MI reporting is launched we will be able to provide more reliable data on this.

ASYLUM (60–63)

65. Ten individuals seeking asylum were recognised as refugees or given humanitarian protection by the UK in quarter four 2012 following a previously unsuccessful claim and forcible removal from the UK.

66. These figures are made up of nationals of Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq and Pakistan. For data protection reasons I am unable to provide a more specific breakdown.

67. 2,990 Azure cards [7] were in use during quarter four 2012.

<?oasys [np ?>68. The table below shows the number of support enquiries received by the UK Border Agency and Sodexo in 2012:

	UK Border Agency	Sodexo
Q1 2012	829	263
Q2 2012	823	278
Q3 2012	828	333
Q4 2012	840	432

STAFF NUMBERS AND REMUNERATION (64–66)

69. The table below shows the number of full time equivalent (FTE) staff employed by the Agency, by group, at the end of quarter four 2012:

	Q4 2012
International Operations and Visas	1,836
Resources and Organisational Development	1,237
Strategy and Assurance Group	532
Crime and Enforcement Group	3,975
Immigration and Settlement Group	4,472
Director of Operations	1,250
Total	13,300

70. The Agency spent approximately £572,500 on external consultants in quarter four 2012, primarily in support of improving the Agency’s operational effectiveness, including by benchmarking processes against other organisations. The work provided insight to the characteristics and relative maturity of UKBA peer organisations (including those abroad). The findings of this research informed areas for the Agency to prioritise in the next two years to increase organisational performance. Overall the Agency’s spend on external consultants was lower in 2012 (approximately £1.3million) than in 2011(approximately £1.4million).

LOST DOCUMENTS (67)

71. As advised in my letter of 16 January, we do not hold information on lost documents centrally.

Rob Whiteman
Chief Executive, UK Border Agency

28 February 2013

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