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10 Nov 2003 : Column 106W—continued
Ministerial Visits
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the visits within the UK made by Ministers in his Department in each of the last five years, broken down by constituency. [136951]
Fiona Mactaggart: Detailed information for all Ministers in respect of UK travel is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. All travel is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers, copies of which are in the Library.
Mobile Phone Theft
Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of reported street crime involved the theft of mobile phones in each of the London boroughs in 2002–03. [136473]
Ms Blears: The Home Office does not centrally collect or collate national statistics on the numbers of mobile phone thefts as mobile phone theft is not a separate crime category. Mobile phone theft crime figures are included within the crime categories of robbery, snatch theft and theft from the person.
Home Office Research ("Mobile Phone Theft", HORS 235) published in January 2002 estimated that mobile phones were stolen in 28 per cent. of all robberies in 2000–01. The Metropolitan Police Service estimate that around 50 per cent. of street crime in London involved the theft of a mobile phone.
National Probation Service
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many probation staff were in post on 30 June, broken down by grade; and how many vacancies there were in the National Probation Service on the same date. [135998]
Paul Goggins: The information requested is as follows.
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| Staff in post as at 30 June (FTE) | Vacancies as at 30 June(23) (FTE) | |
|---|---|---|
| Senior Probation Officers | 1,172.90 | 36.10 |
| Senior Practitioners | 279.50 | 23.30 |
| Probation Officers | 5,073.67 | 323.20 |
| Trainee Probation Officers | 1,519.70 | 58.20 |
| Probation Services Officers | 4,925.43 | 326.10 |
| Psychologists | 34.00 | 0.50 |
| Other operational Staff | 735.00 | 22.70 |
| Total Operational Staff | 13,740.70 | 790.10 |
| Deputy Chief Officers/Directors | 41.70 | 2.00 |
| Assistant Chief Officers or Equivalent | 281.20 | 7.70 |
| Area/District Managers or Equivalent | 93.50 | 0.60 |
| Managers—Section or Function Heads | 374.90 | 10.90 |
| Support Staff—Administration | 3,533.30 | 199.87 |
| Support Staff—Others | 363.40 | 53.80 |
| Other Specialist Workers | 194.30 | 4.70 |
| Total Support Staff | 4,882.70 | 279.57 |
| Total(24) | 18,623.40 | 1,069.67 |
(22) Figures shown as a Full-time Equivalent (FTE)
(23) Unable to obtain information from 3 (out of 42) Areas in time to make this response.
(24) Figures exclude those employed within and by the National Probation Directorate
Note:
The levels of vacancies across the National Probation Service (NPS) amount to 5.43 per cent. of the total workforce of the service.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons (a) joined and (b) left the National Probation Service for England and Wales in 2002–03, broken down by grade. [135999]
Paul Goggins: The information requested is as follows:
| England and Wales | Persons joining the National Probation Service | Number of leavers and joiners(25) persons leaving the National Probation Service |
|---|---|---|
| Deputy Chief Officers | 4 | 3 |
| Assistant Chief Officers(26) | 30 | 13 |
| Senior Probation Officers | 43 | 78 |
| Probation Officers(27) | 723 | 642 |
| All other staff | 2,079 | 1,670 |
| Total | 2,879 | 2,406 |
(25) Figures shown in Headcount
(26) Includes area managers
(27) Includes senior practitioners, trainee probation officers, temporary probation officers
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which probation areas in England and Wales expect a budget deficit for the current financial year; and what staffing consequences he expects as a result. [136000]
Paul Goggins: The following probation areas in England and Wales are currently forecasting a budget deficit in excess of one per cent. of the budget allocation:
- Cumbria, Gloucestershire, Lancashire, Northamptonshire, Staffordshire, Surrey, Teesside, London and South Wales.
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Other areas, which are currently forecasting a deficit below one per cent. of their budget allocation, will be expected to manage their operations in such a way that any deficit is avoided.
Overall, the probation areas are expected to spend within budget.
No staffing consequences are expected.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many trainee probation officers were appointed in each of the last five years; and how many left (a) less than 12 months after appointment, (b) between one and two years after appointment and (c) between two and three years after appointment. [136003]
Paul Goggins: In the last five years a total of 3,269 trainee probation officers have been appointed with a further 159 due to start in January 2004 as part of the 2003 recruitment process. This will make a total of 3,374.
A total of 268 trainees were recruited in 1999; 282 in 2000; 931 in 2001; 780 in 2002; 1,113 will be the final total of the 2003 recruitment of which 954 have already commenced training.
Of the 3,269 trainees who have so far commenced or completed the training a total of 125 (3.8 per cent.) left less than 12 months after appointment and 45 (1.4 per cent.) left between one and two years after appointment.
Within the past five years a total of 1,481 trainees have completed the programme and become newly qualified officers: the most up to date information shows that of these 35 (2.4 per cent.) left the probation service between two and three years after appointment.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what resources he will provide to the National Probation Service to help it meet its obligations in the new sentencing plans under the Criminal Justice Bill. [136256]
Paul Goggins: Final decisions about both the timing of implementation of the sentencing measures in the Criminal Justice Bill, and the allocation of supporting financial provision to the National Probation Service (NPS) beyond the current financial year, have not yet been made.
The major resource demand for the NPS will arise from the implementation of custody plus. The NPS has begun recruiting additional trainee probation officers to its two-year training programme. We have allocated £11.5 million in this financial year to support this capacity building.
New Prisons
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has obtained funds from the Treasury to enable him to commence the construction of new prisons. [135994]
Paul Goggins: The Treasury have provided funding to acquire at least two sites in 2004–05 for the future development of large multi-function prisons.
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A further 1,290 prison places will also be provided through the new prisons currently under construction at Ashford (near Heathrow) and at Peterborough.
Passport Charges
Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, (1) when it was decided to change the date of the recent increase of passport charges; [136744]
- (2) how many people have complained about the earlier than advertised rise in passport charges; [136745]
(3) Department how much he estimates will have been generated in extra revenue from the rise in passport charges on 2 October rather than 1 November. [136747]
(4) how many people he estimates have been affected by the earlier than advertised rise in passport charges. [136748]
Beverley Hughes: The new fees that became effective on 2 October 2003 were set by the Consular Fees Order 2003, a statutory instrument which was approved by the Privy Council on 17 July and approved by Parliament on 18 July 2003.
Since the announcement was made, 774 complaints have been received at United Kingdom Passport Service (UKPS) Headquarters and the seven Regional Offices via telephone, fax, letter, e-mail and complaint forms submitted at our counters.
The effect of implementing the rise in passport fees on 2 October as opposed to 1 November is estimated to be £2.6 million additional revenues.
Unfortunately we have no data which enables us to determine how many people have been affected by the earlier than advertised rise in passport charges;
Between 2 October 2003 and 2 November 2003, UKPS has issued 407,800 passports. The number of complaints received therefore represent approximately 0.189 per cent. of the total of all passports issued since the fee increase.
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