Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he has taken since the chemical contamination incident in Salisbury to ensure that medical counter measures are in place to protect police officers attending such incidents.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The safety of responders addressing a CBRN event is paramount. To that end we work closely with scientists and responders to ensure that the responders avoid contact with hazardous materials as much as possible. This includes the use of cordons to keep them away from contact with materials, and, for those that do enter contaminated areas, the provision of world class Personal Protective Equipment.
In the event that medical countermeasures are required for the police responders, national stockpiles of medical countermeasures (medicines and materials) are held to treat casualties. These are maintained to provide a specific response to risk in the National Risk Assessment based on clinical and scientific advice.
These measures are regularly reviewed.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2017 to Question 110954, when she plans to write to the hon. Member for Christchurch separately on the case of the application of Mr Morley for British citizenship.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The former Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis responded to Sir Christopher’s enquiry on 17 November 2017. A copy of this response was re-sent on 5 February.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she will provide a substantive response to the letter dated 27 June 2017 from the hon. Member for Christchurch on the application by Mr Morley for British citizenship.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
I will write to the Hon. Member separately about this case.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many cases of criminal fraud were reported to the National Fraud Reporting Centre, Action Fraud, in each of the last 12 months for which information is available; and how many of those cases (a) have been or are being investigated and (b) have led to prosecution.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The Home Office collects quarterly data on the number of fraud offences reported to Action Fraud via the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB). The most recently available data are for the year ending December 2016, and are available in Table QT1 of the Office for National Statistics’ ‘Crime in England and Wales: Quarterly Data Tables’ at this website:
Information on the number of fraud offences that are disseminated to the police by the NFIB for investigation is published on an annual basis. Information for the year ending March 2017 will be published on the 20 July in ‘Crime Outcomes in England and Wales, year ending March 2017’.
The Home Office does not hold information on the number of fraud investigations which have led to prosecutions. The Ministry of Justice are responsible for prosecutions data.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the Government's policy is on the prosecution of people who perpetrate criminal fraud; and what advice her Department has given to chief constables in England on the priority to be accorded to such crime.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The full force of the law should be used to pursue, and prosecute individuals who choose to commit fraud. Whilst it is down to Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners to set local priorities for their force area, I recognise that driving up the law enforcement response to fraud at national, regional and local levels must be a priority. Through the Joint Fraud Taskforce, we are working with the City of London Police, the national lead force for fraud, to establish a consistent and transparent approach to fraud across all police forces.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many illegal migrants have been (a) identified, (b) arrested and (c) deported after being detected at Poole Port in each of the last six months for which information is available.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The requested information has not been released as it is Border Force policy not to release port-specific data on grounds of border security.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it the policy of the Government that firms which employ people who have no legal right to be in the UK should be (a) named and (b) prosecuted.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Immigration Act 2016 introduced a range of further measures to deter people from working illegally in the UK and to respond robustly to rogue businesses who employ them, alongside the sanction of civil penalties. Illegal workers will face the prospect of having their earnings seized as the proceeds of crime as a consequence of illegal working being made a criminal offence. Provisions in the Act make it easier to prosecute an employer who knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, that the person they employ has no permission to work in the UK and this is accompanied by an increase in the maximum custodial sentence from 2 to 5 years. Rogue employers could also have their businesses closed if they continue to flout the law, and licences in the private hire vehicle and taxi sector and alcohol and late night refreshment sector will be subject to immigration checks and continuing compliance with immigration laws.
It would not be a proportionate response to name and prosecute every employer who employs an illegal worker. For example, they may have accepted a forged immigration document where the forged element was not reasonably apparent or simply failed to check the right to work document correctly. We will, accordingly, continue to name employers who have not paid or are not making regular payments towards a civil penalty or have been served with a second or further penalty, and apply the civil penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker employed as a sanction in most routine cases involving the employment of illegal workers. However, in more serious cases, prosecution may be considered when it is the appropriate response to non compliance and in the public interest.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 21 July 2016 to Question 42843, whether all necessary checks were completed on the departure of the ferry Barfleur from Cherbourg to Poole.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
Any checks on the Barfleur when it departs from Cherbourg is the responsibility of the French authorities. We reaffirm that 100% of necessary checks were completed on the Barfleur on arrival into Poole on the 23rd June.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it the policy of the Government to enable councils in England to operate combined registration districts.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
There are no current plans to change the law to enable councils in England to operate combined registration districts. Under existing legislation some local authorities undertake joint working initiatives to offer improved service options, which have proved successful.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons the UK Border Agency did not carry out any checks on vehicles crossing from Poole to Cherbourg on the ferry Barfleur on 23 June 2016.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
On June 23rd all necessary checks were completed on the departure of the Barfleur from Poole.