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Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times police cells were used to hold prisoners overnight in each month in 2014 and 2015.

Andrew Selous

There are occasions, for logistical reasons, where prisoners may be temporarily held overnight in police cells. Police cells are used not due to a lack of space across the prison estate but because it is not always possible to transfer prisoners from courts to prisons in the time available at the end of court sittings.

The number of prisoners held overnight in a police cell has been cut from a peak of over 50,000 in financial year 2007-08.

We will always have enough prison places for those sent to us by the courts and will aim to deal with the prison population in a way that gives taxpayers the best possible value for money. Operation Safeguard, have not been used since 22 September 2008 and no police cells under Operation Safeguard have been on stand-by since the end of October 2008.

The following table shows the total number of prisoners who were temporarily held overnight in police cells in England and Wales in each month in 2014-15. The totals include adults, young adults (18 to 20-year-olds) and young people (15 to 17-year-olds).

	Number of uses of police cells
2014	2015
January	168	89
February	372	112
March	175	74
April	64	107
May	46	47
June	112	113
July	274	180
August	116	63
September	62	137
October	96	174
November	149	195
December	111	151
Total	1745	1442

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01/01/2023

Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward proposals to require the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority to compensate families of victims of criminal offences.

Mike Penning

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme compensates victims of violent crime who have sustained physical or mental injuries.

In cases where the victim of a violent crime has died, close family members of the deceased may be eligible to receive awards such as bereavement and dependency payments for the loss of a loved one. The rules governing such payments are set out in the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.

01/01/2023
Danny Kinahan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much of the £50 million fund established for First World War commemorations has been allocated to or spent in Northern Ireland.

David Evennett

The Heritage Lottery Fund has committed £13.9m of Lottery funding to 58 projects across Northern Ireland and continues to welcome applications for First World War projects of any size. One of these projects is the restoration and display of HMS Caroline – the only surviving ship from the 1916 Battle of Jutland – in Belfast’s historic maritime quarter.

01/01/2023
Harriet Harman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Harriet Harman on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on (a) the nature of the Government’s consultation on the proposed Bill of Rights and associated measures and (b) ensuring that that timing does not overlap with the period of the purdah of the Scottish Government or the dissolution of the Scottish Parliament.

David Mundell

I meet with Cabinet colleagues and other ministers regularly to discuss a wide range of matters. We are committed to consulting fully on our proposals prior to the introduction of any legislation and we will announce further details in due course.

01/01/2023
Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what tests a person convicted of death by careless or dangerous driving is required to undertake being allowed to drive again.

Andrew Jones

If a person is convicted by the Courts of death by careless or dangerous driving and disqualified he/she will need to retake a theory test and an extended driving test in order to get their full driving licence back. An extended driving test must last no less than 60 minutes.

01/01/2023
Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the proposed timescales are for the completion of the business case work for the electrification of the Southport to Salford Crescent and Kirkby to Salford Crescent railway lines set out in the March 2015 report of the North of England Electrification Task Force.

Andrew Jones

The report of the independent North of England Electrification Task Force made recommendations on the prioritisation for a rolling programme of electrification of all currently unelectrified lines in the North, in three tiers. It recommended that full business case analysis of all Tier 1 schemes should be urgently progressed. Both Southport-Salford Crescent and Kirby-Salford Crescent were placed in Tier 1.

The Task Force’s recommendations are being taken into account by Network Rail as it prepares an updated national electrification strategy based on a comprehensive sifting and appraisal process. The strategy will be subject to public consultation this year and will inform the Government’s Rail Investment Strategy for 2019-2024.

01/01/2023
Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will bring forward proposals to require the DVLA immediately to (a) suspend the driving licences of people suspected to have drug-related seizures and (b) require such people to undergo medical tests before their suspension can be lifted.

Andrew Jones

The law allows the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) to revoke a driving licence after appropriate medical investigations have been carried out. In cases where a drug related seizure has been confirmed after medical investigations, the DVLA is able to immediately revoke a licence for a minimum of six months. The licence will only be restored when it has been confirmed that the driver has been free from drug misuse or dependence for an appropriate period. It will normally be necessary for independent medical assessment, including appropriate tests and consultant reports, to be carried out before the driving licence is restored.

01/01/2023
Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2015 to Question 19163, what assessment his Department has made of reasons for changes in the level of prosecutions for tachograph violations.

Andrew Jones

Although the numbers of prosecutions in relation to drivers’ hours and tachograph offences decreased in 2014/15 from previous years, the number of offences found actually increased. In 2013/14 the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency found 10,283 drivers’ hours and tachograph offences, whereas in 2014/15 DVSA found 15,183.

The main reason for the decrease in prosecution figures was a drive to deal with all but the most serious offences by way of fixed penalty, freeing up court time and making more effective and efficient use of enforcement resources in line with Government policy.

01/01/2023
Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22573, what equipment and buildings of any kind situated along the side of the Bexleyheath rail line were damaged in the landslides which blocked the line during the week beginning 11 January 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry

Network Rail has advised that a signalling control cabinet was pushed over by the recent landslip at Barnehurst, and then had to be moved to a location away from the affected area to enable access to temporarily stabilise the landslide. This involved moving the staging on which the cabinet was sited, the cabinet itself, and the cables.

Network Rail further advises that the earthwork was last examined on 5 February 2015, when its condition showed no signs of impending failure. Its condition prior to the earthworks failure was such that its next inspection would have been three years from that date.

01/01/2023
Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22575, whether failure to inspect equipment or buildings situated adjacent to Bexleyheath rail line contributed to the line being blocked during the week beginning 11 January 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry

Network Rail has advised that a signalling control cabinet was pushed over by the recent landslip at Barnehurst, and then had to be moved to a location away from the affected area to enable access to temporarily stabilise the landslide. This involved moving the staging on which the cabinet was sited, the cabinet itself, and the cables.

Network Rail further advises that the earthwork was last examined on 5 February 2015, when its condition showed no signs of impending failure. Its condition prior to the earthworks failure was such that its next inspection would have been three years from that date.

01/01/2023