§ Annabelle EwingTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department(1) on what date his Department agreed a contract with Reliance Monitoring Service to provide a system for tagging individuals seeking asylum; if he will publish a copy of the contract; and if he will make a statement; [183918]
(2) what the value of the contract with Reliance Monitoring Service to provide a system for tagging individuals seeking asylum is. [183920]
§ Mr. BrowneThe Secretary of State has not let a contract with Reliance Monitoring Services for tagging individuals seeking asylum and residing in Scotland.
Reliance Monitoring Services Ltd. have been providing electronic monitoring services in the South of England since 1 October 2001 under the terms of a contract with the Home Office and electronic tagging services within the Scottish criminal justice system since 1 May 2002 under the terms of a contact with the Scottish Executive.
IND plans to pilot the use of electronic monitoring for immigration purposes from the autumn in accordance with clause 36 of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants etc.) Bill.
The pilot in England and Wales will be run under the existing Home Office contract. A separate procurement exercise is under way to provide services for use by IND in Scotland.
§ Annabelle EwingTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals seeking asylum in the UK and residing in(a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland will be involved in his Department's pilot scheme to provide a system for tagging individuals seeking asylum. [183922]
§ Mr. BrowneThe pilot will cover up to 200 people for voice recognition and up to 50 people for tagging (including up to 10 on satellite tracking). Numbers will be divided between the three contractors operating under the existing Home Office contract for England and Wales and an interim contractor in Scotland.
The Immigration and Nationality Directorate has no plans to pilot tagging in Northern Ireland, but will consider the use of electronic monitoring through voice recognition depending on the outcome of the pilots in England and Wales and Scotland.
§ Annabelle EwingTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department consulted the Scottish Executive prior to the awarding of the contract with Reliance Monitoring Service to provide a system for tagging persons seeking asylum. [183923]
§ Mr. BrowneThe Secretary of State has not awarded a contract to Reliance Monitoring Services for the electronic monitoring of individuals seeking asylum and residing in Scotland.
Home Office officials met officials from the Scottish Executive in Glasgow in January and have kept them fully informed of plans to procure electronic monitoring services in Scotland.