Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many registered firearms owners there are in England and Wales, broken down by police force area.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Home Office publishes data on the number of Firearm certificate holders by police force area as part of the ‘Firearm and Shotgun Certificates in England and Wales Statistics - Financial Year 2016/17’ publication. These data can be found in the Table E1 below and at the following link.
Table E1 Firearm certificate holders, shotgun certificate holders and firearm and/or shotgun certificate holders by police force area, 2016/171 | |||
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Police force area | Firearm certificate holders | Shotgun certificate holders | Firearm and/or shotgun certificate holders |
Cleveland | 1,117 | 2,726 | 2,925 |
Durham | 2,593 | 5,772 | 6,135 |
Northumbria | 3,697 | 8,936 | 9,368 |
North East Region | 7,407 | 17,434 | 18,428 |
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Cheshire | 2,815 | 11,424 | 11,800 |
Cumbria | 3,284 | 8,631 | 9,062 |
Greater Manchester | 2,203 | 7,850 | 8,274 |
Lancashire | 3,076 | 12,045 | 12,458 |
Merseyside | 1,025 | 3,512 | 3,747 |
North West Region | 12,403 | 43,462 | 45,341 |
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Humberside | 3,163 | 9,866 | 10,209 |
North Yorkshire | 6,733 | 18,164 | 18,767 |
South Yorkshire | 2,123 | 8,680 | 8,986 |
West Yorkshire | 3,076 | 10,610 | 11,157 |
Yorkshire and the Humber Region | 15,095 | 47,320 | 49,119 |
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Derbyshire | 3,421 | 12,275 | 12,647 |
Leicestershire | 2,430 | 11,433 | 11,707 |
Lincolnshire | 4,076 | 14,215 | 14,597 |
Northamptonshire | 2,623 | 9,973 | 10,208 |
Nottinghamshire | 2,081 | 8,644 | 8,933 |
East Midlands Region | 14,631 | 56,540 | 58,092 |
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Staffordshire | 3,095 | 13,093 | 13,558 |
Warwickshire | 2,146 | 7,882 | 8,110 |
West Mercia | 6,448 | 24,098 | 24,832 |
West Midlands | 1,934 | 8,079 | 8,578 |
West Midlands Region | 13,623 | 53,152 | 55,078 |
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Bedfordshire | 1,608 | 6,348 | 6,593 |
Cambridgeshire | 3,010 | 12,263 | 12,583 |
Essex | 4,899 | 18,604 | 19,295 |
Hertfordshire | 2,407 | 10,382 | 10,726 |
Norfolk | 5,258 | 21,389 | 21,862 |
Suffolk | 4,725 | 17,162 | 17,597 |
East of England Region | 21,907 | 86,148 | 88,656 |
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London, City of | 3 | 29 | 31 |
Metropolitan Police | 4,481 | 25,989 | 27,056 |
London Region | 4,484 | 26,018 | 27,087 |
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Hampshire | 5,413 | 21,858 | 22,785 |
Kent | 5,490 | 20,552 | 21,446 |
Surrey | 3,107 | 12,864 | 13,570 |
Sussex | 6,934 | 21,344 | 22,209 |
Thames Valley | 6,240 | 26,265 | 27,207 |
South East Region | 27,184 | 102,883 | 107,217 |
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Avon and Somerset | 6,095 | 20,767 | 21,543 |
Devon and Cornwall | 11,144 | 30,827 | 32,344 |
Dorset | 3,487 | 10,817 | 11,271 |
Gloucestershire | 2,777 | 11,223 | 11,502 |
Wiltshire | 3,514 | 13,391 | 13,740 |
South West Region | 27,017 | 87,025 | 90,400 |
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ENGLAND | 143,751 | 519,982 | 539,418 |
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Dyfed-Powys | 4,499 | 15,636 | 16,089 |
Gwent | 1,466 | 5,918 | 6,076 |
North Wales | 2,814 | 11,344 | 11,646 |
South Wales | 2,237 | 6,969 | 7,429 |
WALES | 11,016 | 39,867 | 41,240 |
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ENGLAND AND WALES | 154,767 | 559,849 | 580,658 |
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1. Experimental statistics published for the second time in 2016/17. These statistics should be treated with caution as they are still being developed and have not been subjected to the same levels of quality assurance as the other figures in this publication. As the Home Office continues to report on these new figures in future years, it will aim to develop its quality assurance procedures, with a view to increasing confidence in the quality of the data. | |||
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of firearms legally held in people's homes as opposed to being held for their owners by gun clubs.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
All firearms held in a person’s home must be licensed to the satisfaction of the police. In addition, shooting clubs need to be approved from the Home Office to show that they meet the criteria for Home Office approved shooting clubs.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the problem of cable theft in the UK’s communications industry.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Government works closely with industry on resilience issues which include understanding better the impact of cable theft on communications networks. In relation to cables that are made of, or contain metal, the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 provides a strong legislative basis for helping to prevent and tackle such theft by making it more difficult for criminals to dispose of stolen metal.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment will be made of the results of inspections of the relevant police services by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary when decisions on the proposals by police and crime commissioners to take on the functions of fire and rescue authorities under the Policing and Crime Act 2017 are made.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Secretary of State can only give effect to a police and crime commissioner’s proposal to take on responsibility for the governance of fire and rescue where, in her view, the proposal is in the interests of economy, efficiency and effectiveness, or in the interests of public safety.
The Secretary of State’s decision on whether these statutory tests have been met will be made on a case by case basis; considering the particulars of the case at hand and drawing on relevant available information, such as findings from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services inspections.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that the business cases put forward by five police and crime commissioners to take on the functions of fire and rescue authorities under the Policing and Crime Act 2017 comply with the guidance issued by the Association of Police and Crime Commissioner Chief Executives which Her Majesty’s Government commissioned for the drawing up of such business cases.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
We welcome the guidance that has been developed by the Association of Police and Crime Chief Executives (APACE) which helpfully covers a number of issues a PCC will need to consider when developing and consulting on their business case for fire governance, including the statutory tests the business case is required to meet, the manner in which local consultation should be carried out, its duration, and arrangements the PCC should make to publish their response to the consultation. Whilst the guidance is neither statutory nor subject to any Parliamentary procedure, the Government expects PCCs to take it in to account and the guidance has been shared with all PCCs by APACE. It is for PCCs to determine locally how to best use the guidance and demonstrate how their case meets the statutory tests.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which individuals or organisations have been appointed to deliver independent assessments of the business cases put forward by five police and crime commissioners to take on the functions of fire and rescue authorities under the Policing and Crime Act 2017.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
If in response to a PCCs consultation to take on governance of local fire and rescue services, a relevant local authority indicates that it does not support the proposal, the Secretary of State must obtain an Independent Assessment of the proposal. The Home Secretary and I have appointed the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy to carry out independent assessments of the proposals submitted by the PCCs for Hertfordshire, Staffordshire, Cambridgeshire, West Mercia and North Yorkshire.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the experience and qualifications of those individuals or organisations that have been appointed to deliver independent assessments of the business cases put forward by five police and crime commissioners to take on the functions of fire and rescue authorities under the Policing and Crime Act 2017, with regard to the impact that those proposals will have on (1) the corresponding fire and rescue services, (2) the relevant police service, (3) the relevant local authorities, (4) public finances, and (5) public safety.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) has been commissioned to carry out separate independent assessments of proposals from the PCCs of Hertfordshire, Staffordshire, Cambridgeshire, North Yorkshire and West Mercia. CIPFA has substantial public finance expertise and works closely with police and fire and rescue services and is therefore well placed to provide an independent, professional view on business cases.
Whilst the conduct of the assessment is for CIPFA to determine, they have been asked to provide a view on whether they consider the proposal to be in the interests of economy, efficiency and effectiveness, or in the interest of public safety (the statutory tests). CIPFA can contact other organisations if they are of the view that additional input or expertise is necessary to help them make a judgement on whether the proposal is in the interest of the statutory tests. CIPFA secured the views of the local police force, fire service and local authorities during the independent assessment process.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of abuse and assault of shopworkers during "Black Friday" sales, and of the adequacy of protections against such abuse and assault.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
All acts of violence and abuse against retail staff are serious matters whenever and wherever they occur. All such incidents should be reported to the police and taken seriously, investigated and, where appropriate, the perpetrators taken through the courts and met with tough sentences.
At the national level, we are working with the police and the retail sector to identify what more can be done to prevent and respond to violence and abuse against retail staff, as part of the work of the National Retail Crime Steering Group. The Steering Group is jointly chaired by the Home Office and the British Retail Consortium.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the effectiveness of the Licensing Committees and the operation of the licensing process in local authorities.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The House of Lords Select Committee on the Licensing Act 2003 published its report on 4 April. The report contained 73 recommendations and conclusions to improve the effectiveness of the Act, a number of which focused on the effectiveness of Licensing Committees and the operation of the licensing process in local authorities. The Government published its response to the committee on 6 November. There are no plans to carry out a further review.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the need for a replacement for the Dublin III Agreement on refugees when the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Dublin III Regulation concerns asylum seekers, not refugees. It is the mechanism by which the Member State responsible for considering an asylum claim is identified.
The Government has been clear that it is in both the UK and the EU’s best interests to continue to cooperate on asylum and illegal migration issues when we leave the EU. We are ready to discuss the exact nature of this cooperation with our European partners.
As a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, we will continue to honour our international obligations when we leave the EU.