HC Deb 30 November 2000 vol 357 c859W
Mr. Pickles

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if he will make a statement on the level of discretion available to officials in his Department to disclose information to the police on claimants under the new guidance, indicating the extent to which the discretion differs from previous guidance; [138700]

(2) what discussions he has held with the Home Secretary on the new guidance issued to officials in his Department on the disclosure of information on claimants to the police;[138699]

(3) if he will place a copy in the Library of the (a) new guidance and (b) previous guidance issued to officials in his Department on the disclosure of information on claimants to the police; [138697]

(4) what definition he applies to serious and minor crimes in his new guidance issued to officials in his Department on co-operation with the police on the disclosure of information on claimants; [138698]

(5) what representations he has received from the Police Federation on the new guidance issued to officials in his Department on the disclosure of information on claimants to the police.[138696]

Mr. Rooker

Guidance on the level of discretion available to officials in this Department and other matters relating to disclosure of information to the police is contained in the Protection of Customer Information Guide. This was published in April 2000, to replace previous guidance which had been issued in 1992 and which had become out of date. The level of discretion available to officials was unaffected by the revision of the guidance.

We have had an exchange of correspondence with ministerial colleagues in the Home Office about the guidance and officials have had discussions with the Association of Chief Police Officers. We have received no representations from the Police Federation about it. A copy of the new guidance has been placed in the Library. The new guidance can also be viewed on the DSS homepage at www.dss.gov.uk. The previous guidance was withdrawn when the new guide was published, but I am arranging to place a copy in the Library for comparison purposes until the end of 2000.