§ Mr. Duncan SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many arrests have been made each month by BASIS Southern Command since its establishment to date. [68930]
(2) how many of the investigating team of BASIS Southern Command were restricted to work in their office and unable to pursue investigations in the field from September 1998 to date; and if he will make a statement. [68931]
§ Mr. TimmsQuestions on Benefit Agency operational matters are the responsibility of the Chief Executive, Peter Mathison. He will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Mr. lain Duncan Smith, dated 2 February 1999:
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to respond to your recent Parliamentary Questions asking, how many arrests have been made each month by Benefits Agency Security Investigation Service (BASIS) Southern Command since its establishment to date, and how many of the investigating team of BASIS Southern Command were restricted to work in their office and unable to pursue investigations in the field from September 1998 to date.In the period April to December 1998 BASIS investigations resulted in 667 arrests. BASIS investigators do not have powers of arrest and therefore these arrests were effected by the police. Of these, 350 arrests related to investigations conducted by the Southern Unit teams and a monthly breakdown of these is shown on the attached table.No BASIS team has been restricted to work in their office other than where this has been necessary to complete the detailed court preparation work following an intensive investigation.I hope you find this reply helpful.