| Previous Section | Back to Table of Contents | Lords Hansard Home Page |
Lord Rooker: The following table shows figures for 2006-07 which are the latest audited figures available.
3 Jun 2008 : Column WA45
| Annual Expenditure of each District Policing Partnership in Northern Ireland | |
| £000 | |
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
Over the last three years for which records are available, how many Police Service of Northern Ireland officers recruited under the 50:50 process have resigned; and what is the religious balance of those who resigned.[HL3832]
Lord Rooker: I am advised by the chief constable that 128 officers recruited under the 50:50 process have resigned between 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2008. The religious balance of who resigned is shown in the following table.
| Number | |
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the Police Service of Northern Ireland officer seriously injured in a recent car bomb has been replaced for day-to-day work purposes.[HL3833]
3 Jun 2008 : Column WA46
Lord Rooker: The chief constable has provided me with the following Answer.
The injured officer was attached to response policing within F District; the district commander will ensure that the agreed minimum strengths are maintained in this area.
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the target Police Service of Northern Ireland response time to incidents in County Fermanagh; and what is the current actual response time. [HL3834]
Lord Rooker: The chief constable has provided the following Answer.
Incidents are prioritised to ensure the most serious are dealt with first. Given the range of potential incidents, there is no target for response to non-emergency incidents. The PSNI has an internal target to increase the percentage of emergency calls responded to within 15 minutes by 2 per cent points. 88.5 per cent of emergency calls in the Fermanagh Area Command Unit meet this target; this represents an increase of 7 per cent points when compared with the same period last year.
Prisoners: Family Man Relationship Skills
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether family man relationship skills courses and victim awareness courses are available at every prison or young offender institution where offenders are serving indeterminate sentences for public protection, and are required to undergo these courses as a condition of being considered for parole; and if not, whether they have arrangements in place for transferring such prisoners in time for them to undergo such courses elsewhere, so that parole can be considered on the date set by the court. [HL3743]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): Family man relationship skills courses and victim awareness courses are not available in every establishment which holds offenders serving indeterminate sentences for public protection. Whether a prisoner requires a programme, and if so, which one, will depend on the assessment of their risks and need. If a course is needed and cannot be undertaken in an establishment, prison staff are under instructions to prioritise indeterminate sentence prisoners with short tariffs, and transfer them to establishments where their offending behaviour needs can be addressed. The Parole Board takes into account a range of factors when considering release, and attendance on a particular programme is just one factor.
Prisons: Chief Inspector's Report
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will advise prison governors to arrange for a copy of the annual report of the Chief Inspector of Prisons to be lent to any prisoner or young offender who requests it. [HL3742]
3 Jun 2008 : Column WA47
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): Prisoners (including young offenders) may obtain publications, including the annual report of the Chief Inspector of Prisons, from the prison library. Prison libraries are contracted out to the relevant local authority library service provider, which will obtain publications not available from stock on request in the same way as public libraries in the community.
Public Prosecution Service
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many legally qualified people were employed in each of the past three years by the Northern Ireland Public Prosecution Service; and how much was paid in salaries to such employees in the past three years. [HL3697]
Lord Rooker: The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) commenced operation in June 2005. The rollout of the service was completed in October 2007 and it is now fully operational throughout Northern Ireland. The complement of legally qualified staff has increased as the rollout extended throughout Northern Ireland.
The number of legally qualified staff employed by the PPS and the corresponding salaries for each of the past three years is shown in the following table.
| Number of legally qualified staff (at 31 March) | Salaries of legally qualified staff | |
The director and deputy director are statutory appointments made by the Attorney-General. All other legally qualified staff are members of Northern Ireland Civil Service.
Questions for Written Answer: Guidance to Civil Servants
Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the most recent guidance that has been issued to civil servants by the Department for International Development on the drafting of Answers to Questions for Written Answer in the House of Lords. [HL3597]
Baroness Crawley: Cabinet Office guidance for civil servants on drafting Answers to Parliamentary Questions was published in February 2005. A copy of the guidance can be found in the Library of the House. It can also be found on the Cabinet Office website at www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/propriety_and_ethics/civil_ service/pq_quidance.aspx.
3 Jun 2008 : Column WA48
Railways: Diesel
Lord Bradshaw asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether rising oil prices will affect plans to build a diesel version of the InterCity high-speed train. [HL3791]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Department for Transport is currently considering the business case for further electrification, which makes use of an analysis of future oil prices.
The self-powered version of the InterCity Express Programme (IEP) is required to replace existing diesel high-speed trains on non-electrified routes and provide an operational flexibility which is not available in electric trains. We have also specified a bi-mode train, which will be capable of operating on both electrified and non-electrified routes.
Should further electrification be approved, self-powered IEP power cars can be cascaded on to alternative, non-electrified routes.
Railways: Franchises
Lord Bradshaw asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Lord Bassam of Brighton on 15 May (WA 152), on what legal basis a charge is levied when a railway franchise is taken over by another operator; and what is the legal status of the policy statement to which the Written Answer refers. [HL3788]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: A franchise agreement may be terminated if a change of control occurs during the terms of the franchise without the consent of the Secretary of State. The franchise agreement does not fetter the Secretary of State’s power in this respect and, as a matter of private law, she is entitled to require a payment in return for her consent.
| Next Section | Back to Table of Contents | Lords Hansard Home Page |