§ Mr. LidingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department from which areas of his budget he has transferred the money to enable the budget for 2000–01 for the Immigration and Nationality Directorate to rise from the level provisionally agreed in the Comprehensive Spending Review to that noted in the IND Business Plan 2000–01. [142431]
§ Mrs. RocheFollowing the Comprehensive Spending Review the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) was provisionally allocated a budget of £590 million for 2000–01, including £300 million for asylum support costs.
Additional financial provision was made available as set out in my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary's reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Gravesham (Mr. Pond) on 10 November 2000, Official Report, column 430W. In respect of unaccompanied asylum seeking children, £3 million was transferred from the Department of Health. Provision was not transferred from other parts of the Home Office budget.
102W
§ Mr. LidingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his estimate is of the budget available for(a) the Immigration and Nationality Directorate and (b) each unit and directorate within IND for the financial years (i) 2001–02, (ii) 2002–03 and (iii) 2003–04. [142430]
§ Mrs. RocheI refer the hon. Member to the answer I provided on 24 July 2000,Official Report, column 450W.
The settlement for the next three financial years has not been disaggregated to directorate and unit level in the Immigration and Nationality Directorate.
§ Mr. LidingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff days he estimates the Immigration and Nationality Directorate will devote to training in 2000–01 as a result of(a) the Human Rights Act 1998, (b) the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 and (c) the Freedom of Information Act 2000. [142463]
§ Mrs. RocheTraining in the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) is provided in different ways according to need, including via guidance material and team briefings as an alternative to, or to supplement, formal training. It is therefore impossible to estimate the total number of staff days IND will devote to training in these areas. The position in relation to each Act is summarised as follows:
IND has now virtually completed a comprehensive training programme. All staff were provided with introductory guidance in April 1999, and detailed staff instructions were issued subsequently. From May 1999, nominated staff attended half-day seminars on the Act and its implications for the work of IND. The final stage of the programme was to provide a two-day training course for those staff requiring in-depth knowledge of human rights issues. Figures for formal training activity undertaken thus far are provided in the table, along with an estimate of the formal training commitment in the immediate future. Human rights issues will of course be reflected where relevant in all future training activities.
Trained1 To be trained1 Half-day seminar 1,255 101 2 day course 358 632 1 Figures given in staff days (b) Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000
IND intends to implement an extensive training programme on the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. Where possible, this will be integrated with other relevant training programmes planned for the new year, including induction training for 700 new recruits to the Immigration 103W Service and race awareness training due to be delivered to over 1,800 IND middle managers between January and March 2001. In addition, IND plans to provide more detailed training on the Act to approximately 550 key staff in March 2001.
(c) Freedom of Information Act 2000
The Home Office plans to organise a half-day pilot training event in IND, involving more than 50 staff, before the end of this financial year. This will be used to assess the Directorate's wider training needs in respect of Freedom of Information.