§ Mr. PaiceTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the roll-out of the Airwave system to be completed; what dates were originally given to police forces; what compensation he is seeking from 02 for the delays in roll-out; and what proportion of masts necessary for complete roll-out are(a) completed, (b) being built and (c) awaiting planning consent. [47606]
§ Mr. DenhamThe contract for the provision of the Airwave service specifies completion of the roll-out in England and Wales by June 2004, and in Scotland by 2005.
The delivery dates agreed with individual police forces, known as 'Ready For Service' (RFS dates, commenced in 2001, and are being rolled-out in England, Wales and Scotland as indicated above.
As with any large project using leading-edge technology there has been a number of complex technical issues that have had to be resolved as the project has rolled-out. Delays have also been caused by such factors as the foot and mouth epidemic, and obtaining planning permissions for mast sites. MMO2 has responded to this by instigating a fundamental review of RFS dates which began in November 2001. This review is still on-going and a full assessment of the position will not be possible until the main results of the review become available.
The Police Information Technology Organisation (PITO) is currently developing the approach that should be taken to seek appropriate remedies from MMO2, and will begin consultations with police forces shortly.
The current situation is that 15 per cent. of radio masts have been built, 24 per cent. of sites are awaiting planning permission, 20 per cent. have been identified but not yet submitted for planning permission, and 41 per cent. had yet
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1997 1998 1999 20001 20011 Romania Applications received2 605 1,015 1,985 2,160 1,425 Total initial decisions3 645 1,160 440 2,800 2,125 Cases considered under normal procedures4: Number of cases 645 1,160 350 2,725 2,125 Granted asylum (percentage) 0 0 1 1 0 Granted ELR (percentage) 1 0 0 1 3 Refused (percentage) 98 100 99 99 97 Backlog clearance exercise5: Number of cases — — 95 75 — Granted asylum or ELR under background criteria (percentage) 0 0 50 63 0 Refused under backlog criteria (percentage) 0 0 50 37 0 Czech Republic Applications received2 240 515 1,790 1,200 930 Total initial decisions3 210 180 275 1,800 855 Cases considered under normal procedures4: Number of cases 210 180 275 1,800 855 Granted asylum (percentage) 0 0 0 1 0 Granted ELR (percentage) 0 0 0 1 0 Refused (percentage) 100 100 100 99 100 Backlog clearance exercise5: Number of cases — — 6— 6— — Granted asylum or ELR under background criteria (percentage) 0 0 100 100 0 Refused under backlog criteria (per cent.) 0 0 0 0 0 to be acquired. The number of sites needed to complete the roll-out will depend upon exact police service requirements, topology and local planning considerations.