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To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by the then Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, on 29 April (Official Report, House of
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Lord West of Spithead: It would be inappropriate to give details of individual cases.
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord West of Spithead on 16 June (WA 200), how many Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Indian nationals have been given leave to enter the United Kingdom to undertake student courses in each of the past five years; and how many nationals of those countries have been given leave to remain in the United Kingdom indefinitely in those years. [HL4552]
Lord West of Spithead: The available data on Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Indian nationals for 2003 to 2007 are given in the attached tables. Corresponding data for 2008 are scheduled for publication in August 2009.
Statistics on students given leave to enter the United Kingdom and persons granted settlement (indefinite leave to enter or remain) by country of nationality are published annually in tables 2.3 and 5.7 respectively in the Home Office statistical publications Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom. These publications may be obtained from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html.
(2) Includes nationals of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia before 1 May, but excludes them from this date.
(3) Due to some gaps in the data from ports, estimates have been used.
(4) Exclude nationals of Bulgaria and Romania.
(5) Where administrative records on non-EEA nationals were unavailable for statistical analysis, data has been estimated and this calculated figure is shown in brackets alongside the number actually recorded. It is not possible to estimate totals for individual nationalities from the available data.
(6) Includes Student Visitors.
Data rounded to 3 significant figures.
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| Table 2 Grants of settlement (1)(2) by country of nationality, excluding EEA and Swiss nationals (3), 2003 to 2007 | |||||
| United Kingdom | Number of persons | ||||
| Country of nationality | 2003 | 2004 (4) | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 (5)(P) |
(1) Indefinite leave to enter or remain.
(3) Data also exclude dependents of EEA and Swiss nationals in confirmed relationships granted permanent residence.
(4) Includes nationals of Cyprus, Czech Republic. Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland Slovakia and Slovenia before 1 May 2004 but excludes them from this date.
(5) Excludes Bulgaria and Romania.
Date rounded to the nearest 5.
Immigration: Detention
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many detainees have escaped from each immigration detention centre in each of the past five years. [HL4382]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord West of Spithead): Information on the number of detainees who have escaped from each immigration removal centre is taken from local management information. This data are normally used for management information only and are not subject to the detailed checks that apply for National Statistics publications.
In 2004, there were 12 escapes from Oakington immigration removal centre.
In 2005, there were four escapes from Oakington and one from Campsfield immigration removal centres.
In 2006, there were 19 escapes from Oakington and one from Dungavel immigration removal centres.
In 2007, there were 63 escapes from Oakington, 26 from Campsfield and one from Yarl's Wood immigration removal centres.
In 2008, there were 25 escapes from Oakington, seven from Campsfield, one from Dungavel and two from Haslar immigration removal centres.
The UK Border Agency takes all escapes very seriously. Procedures are in place to seek to recover individuals who escape from detention. The police are informed immediately and the individuals' details are recorded on the police national computer (PNC) as an absconder should the individual be apprehended at a later date.
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
Question
Asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord Bach on 22 June (WA 256), what is their assessment of the practical benefits to the people of the United Kingdom of allowing the right of individual petition under the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. [HL4637]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Department for Work and Pensions (Lord McKenzie of Luton): Assessment of the benefits will come in the light of the outcome of any applications that follow ratification. The Government will keep under review the applications that are made under this protocol, including how they are handled by the relevant committees at the United Nations, and whether the outcomes demonstrate significant additional benefits to people in the United Kingdom.
Legal Aid
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the costs of Mr Robert Toner's judicial review of the Electoral Office for Northern Ireland's refusal of a postal vote as his middle name was absent from his application form was met through legal aid; and, if so, under what criteria it was decided the case would be funded; whether two counsel were engaged on his behalf; and under what rule the absence of his middle name was regarded by the Electoral Office as a reason to refuse his application. [HL4623]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Bach): Mr Toner was granted legal aid to bring a judicial review of the Electoral Office's decision. Mr Toner was granted funding for one counsel. As no case report has been submitted in respect of the judicial review proceedings the legal aid costs are not known. The statutory criteria involved in determining applications for civil legal aid, including judicial review proceedings, is whether:
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I cannot comment on the basis for the decision of the Electoral Office to refuse Mr Toner's application. My officials have, however, consulted with colleagues in the Northern Ireland Office who advise that Regulation 9 of the European Parliamentary Elections (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2004 sets out the requirements that must be met to ensure that an absent vote application is successful.
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the costs of Mr Tiarnan O Muilleoir's judicial review of the Electoral Office for Northern Ireland not contacting him because his sister's national insurance number was on his postal vote application was met through legal aid; if so, under what criteria it was decided the case would be funded; and whether two counsel were engaged on his behalf. [HL4624]
Lord Bach: The Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission has no record of an application for civil legal aid for Mr Tiarnan O Muilleoir.
North Korea
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether British naval vessels have been given authority to compel North Korean ships to dock at foreign ports in support of paragraph 13 of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1874. [HL4613]
The Minister for International Defence and Security (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): United Nations Security Council Resolution 1874 does not provide the UK with legal authority to compel North Korean ships to dock at foreign ports.
Consequently, Royal Naval ships have not been directed to do so.
Northern Ireland Office: Efficiency
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Royall of Blaisdon on 19 May (WA 301) concerning 170 efficiency initiatives identified by the Northern Ireland Office, why, if the initiatives have been identified, they could be listed in a parliamentary Written Answer only at a disproportionate cost. [HL3998]
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Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: The department delivered £103.6 million of efficiencies against a target of £90 million and was permitted by HM Treasury to carry over £11 million of this over-achievement to its current value for money programme. A list of the 136 initiatives that delivered these savings has been placed in the Library.
The original 170 efficiency initiatives were identified as part of the planning process for the 2004 Spending Review (SR04) which took place in late 2003. Over time, as the SR04 period progressed, these initiatives were modified as plans were firmed up and new information became available. As a result, the final number of efficiency initiatives at the end of the SR04 period totalled 136. To track through these changes and reconcile the original and final lists of initiatives would involve a manual trawl and investigation of electronic and paper files. This exercise would cost in excess of the £750 disproportionate cost threshold.
Northern Ireland: Bill of Rights
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether their response to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission's consultation about a possible Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland will suggest parity of esteem for Ulster Scots culture, language and history. [HL4476]
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Baroness Royall of Blaisdon): The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission's advice to the Government on a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland include proposals for rights relating to identity, culture and language. The Government will be consulting on their response to the advice.
Offender Management: Staff
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many staff will be employed by each Director of Offender Management in England and Wales in the current financial year. [HL4626]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Bach): Proposed staffing levels within each Director of Offender Management's office are shown in the table below.
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