§ Miss WiddecombeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of(a) the number of requests for checks, (b) the income from fees and (c) the expenditure associated with running the Criminal Records Bureau in the first two years of operation; and if he will make a statement. [157172]
§ Mr. Charles Clarke[holding answer 6 April 2001]: The Criminal Records Bureau will begin to issue Standard and Enhanced Disclosures later in the current financial year. It is anticipated that demand will be at a low level initially, and will build up. Basic disclosures will not begin to be issued before the 2002–03 financial year. Cost and business projections have been based on the following levels of demand during this and the next financial year:
2001–02 2002–03 Enhanced disclosures 1,216,751 3,182,690 Standard disclosures 109,526 296,590 Basic disclosures 0 2,786,350 Estimated total revenues, and the estimated total cost of operating the Bureau, during the same two years are as follows:
£ 2001–02 2002–03 Estimated total revenues 12,655,727 63,430,902 Estimated total cost 48,277,786 80,425,047 On the best information available, we anticipate that, despite the low level of income initially, progressively higher income will enable recovery of the full cost of establishing and operating this new service to be achieved within a period of five years.