Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the document Crime in England and Wales: Police Force Area Data Tables, published by the Office for National Statistics on 19 July 2018, what assessment his Department has made of the reason for the increase in the level of reported crime in Northumbria between April 2017 and March 2018; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nick Hurd
Crime figures for England and Wales are published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and incorporate police recorded crime (PRC) and the independent Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW). The table below shows the latest changes in PRC for Northumbria for the year ending March 2018 compared to the previous year.
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tables
Overall, crime recorded by police forces in England and Wales increased by 11% in the year ending March 2018. The independent Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said that this increase is largely due to improvements in crime recording by police forces, and the increased willingness of victims to report such crimes to the police. The ONS has also noted that there have been genuine rises in some low-volume, high-harm categories of violence, notably knife crime, gun crime and homicide. Our Serious Violence Strategy, published on 9 April, puts greater focus on steering young people away from a life of crime, while continuing to promote a strong law enforcement response.
The most recent national crime figures are published by the Office for National Statistic in ‘Crime in England and Wales: year ending March 2018’ (https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/crimeinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2018).
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has plans to extend the length of time that newly recognised refugees can continue to claim asylum support after a decision to grant leave to remain.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
Newly recognised refugees can continue to claim asylum support for a further 28 days after the grant of their status. There are no plans to extend this period.
The grant of refugee status means refugees are eligible to apply for mainstream benefits. If they would like assistance with the application an early appointment at a local job centre is arranged for them. This process is designed to ensure that refugees receive the first payment of any benefit they are entitled to before the 28 days period expires, either by full payment of the benefit or through an advance payment.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has plans to fund independent advice on the asylum process for people subject to asylum processes.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Home Office has provided grant-funding on a national level to Migrant Help for the provision of independent advice to asylum seekers since April 2014.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has plans to ensure that (a) people seeking asylum are able to access legal advice prior to their screening interviews and (b) screening interviews for asylum are not used during credibility assessments.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
All asylum claimants have the opportunity to be legally represented during the consideration of their asylum claim; the Legal Aid Agency ensures that legal aid funding is provided to those who need it. Free independent guidance is available to claimants provided by Migrant Help, including on finding legal representation. The straightforward nature of the screening interview means that claimants do not, in general, need to have legal advice prior to that interview.
The process of making an asylum decision is underpinned by an overall assessment of credibility where decision-makers must carefully consider all available evidence, including responses and statements provided during the completion of the screening questionnaire. Where a claimant makes a statement at asylum screening which is inconsistent with a statement provided later, they will be provided an opportunity to explain the discrepancy during their substantive interview.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what measures are in place to ensure that interpreters of interviews during the asylum process are able to translate to a high quality and produce work to an accredited standard.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
All asylum interviews are carried out by an impartial interviewing officer.
All interpreters engaged by the Home Office must demonstrate they have the required skills and qualifications. They must also:
They are also bound by a “Code of Conduct” to ensure minimum standards for interpreting and behaviour.
Home Office policy and guidance ensures that in the event of interpreters or interviews falling short of those standards, it would not adversely affect an individual’s asylum claim.
Interviewing Officers are encouraged to provide feedback on the performance of interpreters, using specifically designed monitoring forms. Interviews may also be monitored for training and security purposes.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) police officers, (b) police staff and (c) police community support officers were in post in Northumbria in each year from 2010 until the most recent period for which data is available.
Answered by Nick Hurd
The Home Office collects and publishes statistics on the number of police officers, police staff, and Police Community Support officers (PCSOs) employed by each Police Force Area in England and Wales on a bi-annual basis. These data are published in the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical publication.
Data on the number of police officers, police staff and PCSOs in Northumbria, as at 31 March each year and going back to March 2007, can be found in the accompanying Open Data Table: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/629362/open-data-table-police-workforce.ods
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the effect of changes in police officer numbers on the ability of police to respond to anti-social behaviour.
Answered by Nick Hurd
Chief Officers and Police and Crime Commissioners are responsible for local operational decisions including allocating appropriate resources to tackle anti-social behaviour. The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 provides the police with a wide range of powers to tackle all forms of anti-social behaviour effectively. We have therefore not made any specific assessment of the changes on police officer numbers to respond to anti-social behaviour.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect of the level of the 2018-2019 policing budget on police numbers in Northumbria for (a) 2019-20 and (b) 2020-21.
Answered by Nick Hurd
The 2018/19 police funding settlement provided additional flexibility for forces to increase funding through council tax precept and protected Government grant funding to Police and Crime Commissioners in cash terms. The Northumbria PCC used this flexibility and saw an increase in direct resource funding of £5.2m this year.
The size and composition of the police workforce is a local decision for PCCs and Chief Constables.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the rates of financial assistance provided through asylum support.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The most recent assessment of the adequacy of the asylum support rates is set out in a report published in March 2018, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-on-review-of-cash-allowance-paid-to-asylum-seekers.
We are currently undertaking a further review of the rates and have consulted key stakeholders in the normal way.
The consultation period has now ended and a decision on whether the rates should change will be made shortly.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to measure the effectiveness of police forces' use of drones in response to (a) motorbike, (b) off-road bike and (c) moped related crimes.
Answered by Nick Hurd
Decisions to use drones and in which circumstances are operational matters for the police.
In a study published on 30 November HMICFRS recommended that the National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC) publish an Air support strategy to consider how drones, rotary and fixed wing aircraft are most effectively used by police forces. The NPCC has accepted this recommendation.