What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Europol in combating organised crime. [85564]

Europol is already providing valuable support to member states in their efforts to tackle organised crime. Its role will become even more important when it takes up its full range of activities, which we hope will be on 1 July.

I thank my hon. Friend for that answer. Will she explain the particular role that Europol will play in the fight against drug trafficking? Does she acknowledge that we need the co-operation of European Union member states if we are to be successful in that fight against drugs, and that we shall never be successful if we go it alone?

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The fight against organised criminals who trade in drugs is an extremely important task for Europol, as it was for Europol's precursor, the Europol drugs unit. Recently, there have been some very successful operations in which, as a result of intelligence from the Europol liaison officers, about 207 kg of cocaine was seized in Spain. Europol will be able to do a most important job, which will mean that our streets will be safer and that fewer people will suffer as a result of drugs going into our constituencies.

Chastened by her party's drubbing in the European elections, when people voted to be in Europe, not run by Europe, does the hon. Lady acknowledge the constructive role of the previous Conservative Government in the creation of Europol, and that the success to which she has just referred is based on co-operation between member Governments? Is it not true that the worst possible development for Europol would be to bring it and the criminal justice system into the competence of the European Commission—a discredited commission that cannot even deal with fraud in its own affairs?

It is correct that the previous Government played a most important role in the setting up of Europol, as the hon. Gentleman points out. The United Kingdom was the first country to sign the Europol convention. We are absolutely clear that Europol's powers will be operative, not operational; its staff will not have powers to arrest people or to initiate investigations independently, nor will they operate in the territory of member states, except in a support capacity. In view of that, we can all support the work that Europol will do to make our country safer from criminals—particularly from organised criminals.

If he will make a statement on the Government's policy towards the use of identity cards. [85565]

I see no arguments to convince me in favour of compulsory identity cards whereby a failure to carry a card in a public place would become a criminal offence. Subject to that caveat, we keep under review the balance of advantages and disadvantages that national identity cards could bring.

My right hon. Friend will know that there is wide support among the general public not only for the introduction of compulsory cards, but for voluntary cards to be used as an interim measure. Why does he not now put that matter out for national consultation, through our access to local authorities, to the police and to Departments of State and also by using focus groups, in order to establish the demand and with a view to the early introduction of that excellent system?

Experience in other countries, particularly in Australia, shows that, although the public concerned may, in theory, be in favour of a compulsory card, when they are faced with the consequences of compulsion—namely, that it becomes a criminal offence not to have a card with them—there is immediately the potential for substantial and gratuitous conflict between the police and individual members of the public whose crime has been to forget their wallet. At that point, support for a compulsory card tends to wither away rather rapidly. I am open to argument over the matter, but I see no argument whatever that would convince me in favour of such compulsory cards. I fully understand the arguments in favour of voluntary identity cards; such cards are different and all of us carry a large number of what amount to voluntary identity cards. There is a case for bringing together such cards, and we are considering it.

Does the Home Secretary agree that the law-abiding have nothing to fear from the introduction of a national identity card? As he has expressed support for a voluntary identity card, why do the Government not get on with putting one into public use?

I was making exactly the point that the law-abiding have nothing to fear from a voluntary card. However, I believe that they would find it rather oppressive if, simply as a result of forgetting their wallet, they were faced with the fact that they had committed a criminal offence. The police were hardly in favour of the idea of such compulsion when the matter was raised by the previous Government. As for the hon. Gentleman's encouragement to me to get on with it, we are indeed considering the matter; we do not need many lectures from a supporter of the previous Government, who published a consultative document in 1995, but did nothing thereafter.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that to focus on compulsion might be the wrong approach? Many people would like to have an identity card issued by the Government that authenticates one's age and identity—first, for the purposes of age identification and, secondly, to facilitate travel. People in the rest of Europe travel on ID cards without having to wait for a passport—something which many of my constituents tell me is a problem at the moment. Given that 30-odd new Tory Europhobes are now to be going to and from Europe, would it not be helpful, before they go native, to give them an ID card to remind them that they are still British?

Yes—and we would make sure that it had the Union flag on it.

I welcome the Home Secretary's recognition that there are strong objections to making the rights of citizenship dependent on carrying a particular Government identity document, but does he also recognise the practical difficulties? Is the Government machine capable of issuing large numbers of identity cards, given that there are thousands of people queueing in the streets of Liverpool and tens of thousands who cannot obtain a passport in time to go away on holiday? What would such problems be like if they were all waiting for an identity card?

Let me make it clear, as has the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Mr. O'Brien), that I greatly regret the administrative problems that have arisen in respect of the issue of passports following the introduction of the new information technology contract. We are working hard to clear the backlog: many hundreds of thousands of passports have been issued, and the introduction of a fast track has been almost completely successful in ensuring that people receive their passports, if they put on the application form the date by which they have to travel.

Is not the Home Secretary being somewhat complacent about the question of passports? Is not the hon. Member for Rotherham (Mr. MacShane) right—uncharacteristically and in only one respect—to say that it would be a matter of concern if the Passport Agency were to be responsible for the administration of identity cards? Will the Home Secretary give a guarantee that people—especially the people of Liverpool—will not be put through the trauma and worry of waiting for their passports to be returned by that agency? Have not the Government managed to isolate British citizens who want to travel—isolate them from Europe and from anywhere else—through their incompetence in the administration of the system?

No, I do not accept that. I am not in the least complacent about the problems that have arisen and there was no suggestion of complacency in my answer to the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (Mr. Beith). I deeply regret the fact that the administrative problems have arisen, and we are doing all that we can to overcome them. Sadly, the introduction of large-scale IT contracts in both the public service and the private sector is all too frequently followed by such administrative problems. The agency is recruiting 300 additional staff to reduce the arrears, and we hope to overcome the problems shortly.

What action he is taking to support Crimestoppers. [85568]

We greatly appreciate the work of Crimestoppers, especially the way in which it allows the anonymous reporting of crime. Ministers attend Crimestoppers events to support its work whenever possible—indeed, I attended a national conference in Birmingham in November. We are holding discussions with Crimestoppers about ways in which we might work together and support it in its work.

In thanking my hon. Friend for his answer, may I point out that one in six of all the cases leading to arrest and charging carried out under the auspices of Crimestoppers have occurred in Greater Manchester? Does he agree that the two main reasons for that success are, first, the good quality of media coverage and, secondly, the high level of support from Greater Manchester police, which provides three full-time detectives as its contribution to Crimestoppers? Will he encourage other police forces to follow the example of Greater Manchester police? Will he consider the possibility of Home Office funding, both for joint projects with Crimestoppers, and to cover some of its core costs?

I join my hon. Friend in congratulating the Greater Manchester police on the work that they do in co-operation with Crimestoppers. That kind of partnership between different agencies and the police is important if we are to combat crime successfully. I understand that Crimestoppers has not yet made any specific formal request to the Home Office for direct funding, but obviously any such request will receive serious consideration. I remind my hon. Friend that we are discussing with Crimestoppers how we can support its work, which we take very seriously.

What plans he has to ensure that applicants to become European Union members meet the required standards in combating organised crime. [R][85569]

The United Kingdom is doing its utmost to ensure that the applicant states meet the required standards laid down by the European Commission in the area of justice and home affairs matters. Measures to combat organised crime form a major part of those requirements. United Kingdom law enforcement agencies are playing a major role in providing training and assistance under the European Union twinning programme and other United Kingdom initiatives to help ensure that standards are met.

As the Minister will be aware, organised crime knows no national boundaries. Will she outline how training and assistance will be applied to ensure that there is proper adherence when countries become members of the European Union?

The United Kingdom has been selected to lead four twinning projects on organised crime and related policing matters in Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Poland and to participate in a fifth in the Czech Republic. That is a recognition of the United Kingdom's law enforcement capabilities and how good our law enforcement is. We will try to encourage EU applicant countries to examine their training and support systems and their accountability and, as my hon. Friend said, to consider the main benefits that will accrue from improving law enforcement agent capabilities through nations joining to fight organised crime effectively as a partnership.

Will the Minister assure the House that the Government will resist extending corpus juris—which is alien to the concept of habeas corpus—to the justice systems either of EU applicant countries, as a condition of membership, or of existing member countries?

Yes, the hon. Gentleman has my full assurance.

What discussions he has had with the parliamentary beer club about its research into licensing laws. [85570]

I met club representatives on 2 July 1998 and 27 January 1999 to discuss how they could contribute most helpfully to the Government's review of licensing laws. The club has been examining licensing systems abroad and is developing its own ideas for reform. I look forward to receiving the club's report, and I am grateful for the advice that it has provided so far about this important subject.

Does my hon. Friend realise that the extension of hours will benefit the trade in this country and that the change will cause no problems for many well-run organisations? However, is my hon. Friend aware of the term "fun pub"? For many residents who live near such places, they are not fun pubs but neighbours from hell. What extra regulations will my hon. Friend put in place to ensure that those residents' quality of life is not diminished further? How can they be sure that their normal life will continue?

My hon. Friend raises a serious problem that deserves our proper attention. The aim of the current review is to balance residents' legitimate concerns—not only about fun pubs but about any licensed premises near their home where there may be disturbances at closing time or at other times—with other people's right to enjoy themselves at a time that is convenient and fits in with how they want to lead their lives. We want a licensing system that is robust enough to defend residents while allowing people to exercise their market choice as consumers.

Is the Minister aware of the beer club's research into the smuggling and bootlegging of beer? Does he agree that the problem undermines the rule of law and is becoming increasingly costly to police forces throughout the country, particularly in big cities? Will he give the House an idea of what the Home Office is doing to combat that crime caused by the Treasury?

The hon. Lady is right to say that the smuggling of beer and other products to evade duty is a serious problem, and we all probably have some constituency experience of that. Young people are often a target group for those smugglers, and we have a serious programme to try to make it harder for anyone to sell alcohol to young people. My Treasury colleagues are aware of the difficulties and of the amount of revenue that is lost, and they are working on ways to combat that serious problem. The hon. Lady is right to draw attention to it, and we have plans to tackle it in the near future.

If he will make a statement on help offered by his Department to victims of domestic violence. [85571]

We have launched an awareness campaign; we have improved funding for the Women's Aid Federation and victim support; we have implemented provisions in the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and the Family Law Act 1996 and we are speeding up justice for victims and protecting vulnerable witnesses.

Violence against women in the home represents a quarter of all violent crime. Does my hon. Friend agree that this scourge needs to be tackled, that it must be given priority and that there must be partnership between agencies and the Government? Will she join me in welcoming the initiative to be launched on Merseyside next month, "zero tolerance for women and children", which will attempt to tackle the problem on that basis?

My hon. Friend is right: 25 per cent. of all violent crime is perpetrated against women and it has to be tackled at the highest levels and with the greatest co-operation between all agencies. Of course we welcome all the many initiatives around the country, and I welcome particularly the zero tolerance campaign to which my hon. Friend refers.

What recent reports he has received from police forces in England on attacks on elderly people; what advice he gives to the police on protecting the most vulnerable members of society; and if he will make a statement. [85572]

The Government, through the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, have encouraged the police and local authorities to work in partnership with other local organisations to tackle crime against the elderly where that has been identified as a local problem. There are many examples of successful local initiatives to deal with bogus callers and those who commit other crimes that particularly affect the elderly, including the doorstep code introduced by the West Yorkshire police, which has made a particularly valuable contribution.

I thank my hon. Friend for that response and also for his Department's effort and its provision of £50 million for the next three years to try to help communities that have high burglary rates. I am concerned about the number of elderly people who feel isolated and socially excluded for want of better street lighting and better lighting around their premises, and more secure doors and windows in their homes to try to prevent people from breaking in and attacking them. It was recently reported that an elderly widow had been murdered in her home, and over the past two years, two of my elderly constituents have been murdered in their homes. My local newspaper regularly reports that elderly people have been attacked, mugged and threatened by people in their community. We need to concentrate more on protecting the most vulnerable people from those bullies.

My hon. Friend rightly identifies crime against the elderly as being essentially a quality-of-life issue for the elderly. There can be nothing more debilitating for an elderly person than the fear that when they go down the road to pick up their daily paper they will return to find that their house has been burgled, or that they will be subjected to harassment while they are going to or from their home. That is why my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary introduced the Crime and Disorder Act and why we are placing particular emphasis on target hardening.

Does the Minister agree that not only such worthwhile initiatives but sentencing policy should take care of the most vulnerable in our society—the elderly and the very young? Is he aware of a very alarming case in Swindon, which was announced, I think this morning, of the release into my constituency on three years' probation of a paedophile who has been convicted of 17 separate offences against very young children? Does he agree that that sends out the wrong message to paedophiles, and a very alarming one to mothers of young children in my constituency?

It would be wrong of me to comment on an individual case, but I would be only too happy to meet the hon. Gentleman to discuss sentencing policy generally, because this House will wish the clearest message to be sent to those who prey on the vulnerable—be they young or old—that they will be punished, and punished severely, when they offend in such a way.

What measures he proposes to increase participation in elections following the result of the European elections. [85574]

The turnout for most countries in Europe fell significantly for these elections, including in some countries—notably Austria, Finland and Germany—by a greater margin than that in this country. Disappointingly, the United Kingdom level was none the less the lowest of any member state, reflecting in part a wider problem with turnouts in the UK. The Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Knowsley, North and Sefton, East (Mr. Howarth), has been chairing a working party on electoral procedures, on which the main Opposition parties are represented. That will be making a number of recommendations that are intended to improve turnout.

Does the Home Secretary accept that Britain is now the apathy capital of Europe, with the lowest turnout in Europe and, indeed, in any European election, ever? Does he also accept that that cannot be blamed on the voting system, since on the very same day, we had the lowest by-election turnout since the war—the lowest peacetime by-election turnout since 1919—and only a month ago, we had the lowest local election turnout for at least a quarter of a century? None of the major parties can draw any comfort from the results, since all voting figures were lower than those for the previous European election. Indeed, the votes for Labour and the Conservatives were the lowest ever in a European election. Even after the counts in Northern Ireland and Scotland, the Tories will have had their lowest vote ever. So, every party should support the measures—

Order. Does the hon. Gentleman realise that he is supposed to be putting a question and not making a statement? I should be glad if he would pose his question to the Home Secretary—and immediately.

Will my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary make proposals to encourage voter participation through measures including early voting at any time in election week, personal and proxy voting on demand, all-year voter registration, weekend voting, citizenship education in schools and perhaps also lower council tax for those who have voted?

My hon. Friend is entirely right—there ought to be consensus on this among all parties—that, irrespective of the voting system used, there is a need for us to ensure rising participation in British elections and British politics. I am pleased to say that the working party chaired by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary is not only considering, but will be making recommendations on, a more imaginative approach to election systems. We must remember that arrangements for the current electoral system were set in the 19th century and have hardly been altered since then. We must bring them up to date for the 21st century.

In the spirit of cross-party consensus and co-operation engendered by the introduction of the dreadful proportional representation system, may I give the Home Secretary a tip for free? If he wants to increase participation in future European elections, let the Labour party take a leaf out of the Conservative book and bring its position into line with the views of 60 per cent. of the people, who do not want this country to enter the single European currency.

As ever, I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his gratuitous advice—[Interruption.] I quite understand Conservative Members' excitement. In Labour's 18 years of opposition we had such moments, when we thought that victory had finally arrived, and all too often we discovered, the next day, that life returned to normal and we faced another 17, 16, 15 or 14 years of Conservative rule—so I sympathise with Conservative Members. I congratulate them on their victory in these European elections; they should savour the day. Meanwhile, we will return to the business of governing the country.

But would it not be wise of the Home Secretary to learn the lessons of what happened on Thursday? There were several. One is that it is pretty clear that proportional representation is not a very good idea in Britain, even if it is in some other parts of Europe. I know that my right hon. Friend is not a paid-up member of those who are for proportional representation. He should also remember that the British people do not go a bundle on the Common Market. The third—and perhaps the most important—lesson is that it is high time that the Labour Government paid a little more attention to their hard-core working-class old Labour vote and perhaps not so much to those who live up long winding drives with pampas grass 12 ft high.

I pay considerable attention to the first category of Labour voters that my hon. Friend mentions. There are not many gravel drives in Blackburn—although there are some—and there is certainly little in the way of pampas grass. On systems of proportional representation, I believe that the House must take note of the fact that, following decisions in which the previous Government were complicit, this country has been required to introduce a common system for elections since 1979 and, following the treaty of Amsterdam, has been required to introduce—[HON. MEMBERS: "That's yours."] Hang on; I know that it was our responsibility, but I do not recall any objections being raised by Conservative Members—[HON. MEMBERS: "What?"]—to this bit. Common principles have been introduced for elections, but scope remains for adjustment of the systems used. As I told the House during the passage of the European Parliamentary Elections Bill last year, we shall establish a review of electoral arrangements—quite apart from the working party chaired by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State, which will obviously examine those arrangements.

Is the Home Secretary aware that among the highest turnouts last Thursday were those in the elections in Wales, but that they were also far from satisfactory? Does he recognise that turnout was higher in those constituencies where parties were proactively involved in campaigning? In his review, will he consider having an open list, not a closed list, because the identification with an individual certainly leads to a higher turnout? Finally, will he bear in mind the need to consider the requirements of disabled people in particular, so that they can turn out to vote more easily, not only in European elections but in all elections? I believe that the Home Office has a meeting on that subject this afternoon.

The right hon. Gentleman is quite right to draw attention to the relatively high turnout in Wales, which, at 28 per cent., was the highest of any part of Great Britain—we do not yet have the Northern Ireland results. That was impressive. The nature of the list system used is a matter for the House. We had many debates about that before the passage of the European Parliamentary Elections Act 1999, and I rather expect that those debates will continue.

The Home Secretary will remember that he promised us a review. We think that it is an excellent idea, and we hope that he gets on with it and throws out most of the rubbish that we are stuck with at present. Will he bear in mind the fact that there is no doubt that the British voter positively dislikes closed lists? Voters want to know which representative they are voting for. Some of us who voted Labour were strongly, strongly tempted to strike out one or two names on the list, and had great difficulty resisting that temptation.

Even had my hon. Friend done so, it would not have spoilt her paper. She should bear that in mind.

Now he tells me.

Without reworking old arguments, which will clearly become new arguments, it is worth pointing out that even under the closed list, people knew who they were voting for, and that each of us, including my hon. Friend, was elected under a closed list, if by that she means a system whereby the party puts forward the candidate for election, not the individual voter choosing the candidate from a particular party.

There will be a great deal of sympathy with the comments of the hon. Member for Bolsover (Mr. Skinner) about the Government's policy. May I make it clear to him that there is an open door to new recruits, from wherever they may come.

That all depends on one's assumption. Others on the Conservative Benches, and probably even the right hon. Gentleman himself, were arguing that first past the post would have led to an increase in turnout, in which case Labour would have done better under the closed list, rather than worse. Whatever else one says about the closed-list system, never in the history of British politics has there been an act of greater generosity by a governing party to both opposition parties than our introduction of the closed list.

The right hon. Gentleman has obviously misunderstood what happened in the elections. If they had been conducted under the first-past-the-post system, the Conservatives would have won more, not fewer, seats, and his party would have lost more. Does he not understand that?

I am confused by the right hon. Gentleman's question. If he is claiming victory for the Conservative party's results under the closed-list system, it is difficult for him also to argue that the Conservative party has somehow been rejected, having been elected under that system. He is right to say that the Conservatives opposed the closed-list system. So far as I recall, so too did the Liberal Democrats. That is a matter of record, as the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (Mr. Beith) will remember. There were many arguments in favour of the closed-list system, and he will recall that I advanced them to the complete satisfaction of my right hon. and hon. Friends.

What research he has commissioned on the impact of increases in funding of police forces on their performance. [85575]

The Audit Commission publishes an annual report on police performance. Her Majesty's inspectorate of constabulary visits each force every year and conducts full inspections of each force every three years, along with regular thematic inspections across forces. The last Audit Commission annual report, published in January this year, found that there was no direct link between increased spending and improved performance in police force areas.

I thank my right hon. Friend for that answer. If there is no such direct link, presumably efficiency has a large part to play in terms of performance. That being so, what steps does my right hon. Friend suggest could be taken to improve the operational efficiency of the police with a view to making them more visible, particularly in market towns?

We have set a challenging but realistic efficiency agenda for the police service. We are asking it to find 2 per cent. efficiency savings, which it then reinvests in its own front-line operational performance. There are many ways in which the police service can improve operational efficiency, not least—but by no means exclusively—by tackling too-high levels of sickness and early retirement through alleged ill health.

Does the Home Secretary accept that while examining performance, it is important also to consider whether the police can lock up criminals? With that in mind, will the right hon. Gentleman examine closely a case that was heard last week in Derbyshire when the police, refusing to name an informant, had to drop the case in the Crown court, thus allowing someone charged with a serious crime to get away, to protect the informant? Will he look at this matter, which is obviously very serious?

I shall look at the case and I shall be happy to see the hon. Gentleman about it. The disclosure of informants' names is an important and sensitive issue. As the House knows, following proposals from the previous Government, there was broad agreement across the Chamber about changing the rules on disclosure in the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996. I accept that those rules may need to be strengthened further.

What representations he has received on the role of the voluntary sector in tackling social exclusion. [85576]

The voluntary and community sector has a key role to play in tackling social exclusion. The Government recognise that many voluntary and community organisations have particular skills and knowledge across a range of subject areas and service provision. That is why the Government have entered into a new spirit of partnership with the sector, and why the policy action teams established to take forward the work on social exclusion use and rely heavily on the contributions of representatives from a range of voluntary organisations.

I thank my hon. Friend for that reply. May I encourage him to invite as wide a variety of voluntary organisations as possible to participate in the debate? For example, only a couple of weeks ago I attended a meeting of the Blackpool Women's Aid organisation. It is keen that the work that it undertakes to combat domestic violence is seen as part of the strategy to combat social exclusion.

Domestic violence is a real threat in terms of law and order—we should never forget that it is a crime—and because it has an appalling impact on the immediate victims, namely women. It is usually women who are the subject of domestic violence, along with their children. By all the indices of deprivation—for example, failure at school and mental health problems—domestic violence plays its part, and is seen to do so. Women's Aid and other voluntary organisations have, and will continue to have, a key role in the development of our strategy to combat domestic violence.

Has the hon. Gentleman examined what has happened with regard to the minimum wage legislation as it applies to voluntary organisations? Many voluntary organisations have people who are paid a small amount to help them with their general expenses. As a result, people have been able to volunteer to help at a women's refuge, a playgroup or whatever. Are these organisations being affected by the fact that people are not able to carry on helping them because they have to be paid the full minimum wage, despite the fact that they are happy to volunteer to work for a couple of pounds an hour?

On the contrary, the National Council for Voluntary Organisations supported the introduction of the minimum wage. There is no way that effective voluntaryism can ever be based on poverty wages.

If he will make a statement on his Department's role in neighbourhood renewal. [85577]

Officials in my Department are working with colleagues across Whitehall on a range of initiatives to promote neighbourhood renewal. Those include the Government's response to the social exclusion unit's report on neighbourhood renewal, the single regeneration budget and the new deal for communities, all of which are playing an important part in ensuring that neighbourhood renewal and combating social exclusion go hand in hand.

I thank my hon. Friend for that answer. Will he join me in congratulating Cheshire constabulary, Cheshire county council and Chester city council on working tremendously hard to put together a community safety partnership, which I had the honour of launching a couple of weeks ago? Will he comment on community safety partnerships in general, which, like all the other initiatives he mentioned, will play a part if we are to repair the social fabric of all our communities? We must recognise the vital role that community partnerships can play, because we need not only to repair the social fabric and the bricks and mortar of our communities after 16 years of neglect, but to tackle crime and the fear of crime.

I am obliged to my hon. Friend. I have had the opportunity to visit Chester, and I heard a presentation and saw for myself the excellent work that is being done by the voluntary sector, particularly in relation to drugs and reducing drug use among young people. The local business sector, the police and the local authority are getting together to make a clear and real contribution to reducing drug abuse in Chester. That is good news for the young people concerned and good news in terms of the effect of drug abuse on crime generally.

After reflecting on measures to assist the renewal of neighbourhoods, does the Minister agree that, far from being a harmless if self-indulgent activity, the spread of graffiti at bus stops, on the walls of public buildings and in other places is corrosive of the forward-looking spirit and the sense of self-respect that are essential to the regeneration of neighbourhoods? Will he therefore confirm that the Government take a dim view of such behaviour and will introduce tougher measures to root out that unattractive phenomenon in our society?

I agree wholeheartedly with the hon. Gentleman. Such graffiti often represent a form of visual violence that is totally unacceptable. Care and concern for the built environment is central to neighbourhood renewal, and I am glad that so many local authorities across the country are recognising that by establishing 24-hour schemes to deal with graffiti. We need more people to take that approach, and we are determined to encourage and support it through our crime and disorder partnerships.

If he will make a statement on his plans to change the system of support for asylum applicants. [85578]

As I announced to the House last Wednesday, I have decided to increase the cash amount paid to asylum seekers and to clarify the Secretary of State's responsibilities for the children of asylum seekers.

I welcome that answer, but does my right hon. Friend agree that the best way to help those many thousands of people who flee oppression and discrimination, some of whom come to this country, is to ensure that quick decisions are made about their status so that they do not have to wait months—or years, in many cases—before a decision is made?

I agree with virtually everything that my hon. Friend said. We are profoundly committed to introducing much faster decision making in the asylum system. We are sticking to the two-months and four-months targets for all asylum applicants from April 2001, but I have already made it clear, in the answer that I gave the House last Wednesday, that we intend to process family cases within two months after the introduction of the asylum support directorate arrangements from April next year.

We have received the first Kosovan refugees in the Vale of York at New Earswick. The local authority responsible, the City of York, has raised a number of questions concerning the outstanding financial arrangements to be decided by the Home Secretary and his Department. Can the Home Secretary assure us that an early answer will be given?

Yes, I can. If the hon. Lady has any further problems on behalf of the local authority, I shall be happy to take them up. I have made it clear that central Government will pay the additional costs incurred by local authorities and the voluntary sector. I understand that my right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government and Housing will shortly write to all local authorities and voluntary organisations, setting out the detailed arrangements.

Although I very much welcome what my right hon. Friend has said about speeding up the system, does he agree that the best way to deal with people who make fraudulent claims is to make a quick decision and to enforce it? If most decisions on families are to be made within eight weeks of their making an application, is it worth setting up what amounts to an alternative Benefits Agency in the Home Office to administer the system, to place them up and down the country, and to issue and redeem the vouchers? Would not it be simpler to restore the right to benefits to families, to make decisions quickly and to enforce them on people who make fraudulent claims?

I regret to say that I do not agree with my hon. Friend's assumptions. There is no doubt that the availability of cash benefits in the social security system is a major pull factor that encourages fraudulent claims at port. It is one of the factors that encourages many people whose claims are wholly without foundation to come in clandestinely, particularly to Dover and other south-east ports, from eastern Europe and other countries where they are not under any threat of persecution. They come in principally to claim cash benefits. That is unacceptable, and has placed a disproportionate burden on Kent authorities and on 10 London boroughs, which, between them, account for more than 50 per cent. of asylum seekers being supported by local authorities. I can tell my hon. Friend, who represents one of those London boroughs, that the only practical way to remove the burden from those boroughs and the Kent authorities is to have a national dispersal and asylum support system such as we propose.

How many Kosovan refugees are currently being accommodated in (i) the United Kingdom, (ii) East Sussex and (iii) Eastbourne. [85579]

So far, 3,773 Kosovan evacuees have been airlifted to Britain under the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees programme. Most of them have been housed in the midlands, the north of England and Scotland. However, 12,360 nationals of the former Yugoslavia have applied for asylum in the United Kingdom since 1996. We cannot identify the precise number living in East Sussex or Eastbourne without examining individual cases.

Despite the fact that the Minister cannot give me the current figures, can he project how many of these refugees will eventually be housed in East Sussex and in my constituency? Will he give the House an assurance that there will be the closest and most detailed consultation between central Government and local government to ensure that the arrangements are proper, efficiently handled and put no undue extra burden on overstretched services in particular areas?

The hon. Gentleman makes a reasonable request. We shall endeavour to ensure that there is full consultation with the local authorities and that they are given as much information as possible about the numbers that they should expect in their area. We shall try to ensure that the arrangements for meeting any additional costs are arrived at after full and proper consultation.

The Kosovan refugees have largely been accepted into hostels and settlement centres. Will my hon. Friend the Minister consider whether that approach might be appropriate for other groups of refugees if it is successful? Will he assure the House that the research unit in the Home Office will look carefully at the consequences of new decisions on support systems so that we learn the lessons of new arrangements for supporting refugees?

My hon. Friend asks two reasonable questions. I hope that I can give a positive response on both. The voluntary sector's use of reception centres for the Kosovans has been successful. We are looking closely at the lessons to be learned from that. We want to be sure that we get it right when we introduce new systems. We can learn a lot from our experience with the Kosovans. We want to ensure that research into support mechanisms is done effectively and that we learn lessons from it.

What research his Department has commissioned about the effects of CCTV on crime levels. [85580]

Research by the Home Office police research group has shown that closed circuit television reduces crime and, importantly, the fear of crime, particularly when it is deployed as part of a wider crime reduction strategy. We shall assess the effectiveness of schemes that received funding under the CCTV challenge competition as the information becomes available.

I thank my hon. Friend for that answer and congratulate the councils of all parties across the country which have successfully implemented CCTV. I should like assurances on two points. First, should not all subsequent bids be rooted in an understanding of local crime and disorder audits and strategies? Secondly, some independent research has been carried out on dispersal, but far more is needed so that we can be assured that the intuitive view that CCTV simply disperses crime elsewhere is not right.

I can assure my hon. Friend on both points. We want to ensure that any application for CCTV funding is rooted firmly in the local crime and disorder audits. We also want to ensure that displacement of crime is studied properly. A study commissioned by the Scottish Office of the CCTV system in Airdrie found that there was no evidence of displacement and that there was a genuine reduction in crime as a result of CCTV. We want to build on that, but my hon. Friend is right to say that we need to ensure that research is done on an even broader basis.

During the assessment that the Minister mentioned, will he make a comparison between the situation in Market Harborough and that in the borough of Oadby and Wigston, both of which are in my constituency? CCTV was introduced in Market Harborough under the Conservative Government, but the Liberal Democrat borough council in Oadby and Wigston has refused to apply to the Home Office for funding under the previous Government and under this Government. Will he make a point of comparing levels of crime in the two areas so that the benefits can be made clear to the feckless Liberal Democrat council in my constituency?

That might be an interesting comparison, but the hon. and learned Gentleman should know that when we came to office, there was only £1 million left in the budget for CCTV. We have introduced a £170 million CCTV initiative that involves £150 million for England and Wales, £13 million for Scotland, £4 million for Northern Ireland and £3 million for Wales. That money is tied into a £250 million crime reduction package. We are investing in reducing crime, whereas the previous Government merely talked about it.

If he will make a statement on the progress made in the inquiry relating to the murder of WPC Fletcher. [85581]

The Metropolitan police have recently completed the report of their review of the evidence surrounding WPC Fletcher's murder and of the allegations made in the "Dispatches" programmes, and I understand that no evidence or intelligence was found to corroborate those allegations. Instead, the review has supported the findings of the original investigation that WPC Fletcher was killed by a bullet fired from the first floor of the Libyan People's Bureau.

I thank my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary for his sustained personal interest in the matter and for his letter of 3 June. Will the criminal investigation in conjunction with the Libyan authorities take a long time? What is the hoped-for time scale?

First, I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his remarks, but I wish to thank him in return for his great forbearance because the investigation by the Metropolitan police took much longer than anybody anticipated. As I said to him in my letter, that is at least testament to the thoroughness with which the review was conducted. I cannot give my hon. Friend a precise answer to his second question, but I am happy to write to him and, as I said in my letter of 3 June, to meet him to brief him in more detail about the nature of the review.