Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-07-16
Topic: Law and Crime
Questions: Declaring an interest as someone who used to prosecute for Oxfordshire trading standards, I know the immense distress caused to the elderly by rogue traders. Disturbing research suggests that up to 1 million people are on what are called “suckers lists” of people who are known to be vulnerable and are repeatedly visited. What are Ministers doing to ensure that banks and trading standards link up and can help those who are known to be vulnerable?; My constituent Duc Nguyen was a victim of human trafficking to the UK. Despite the Home Office recognising that fact, he was detained and sent to a detention centre at Heathrow. Luckily, he has now been released, but is it not against Home Office policy to detain victims of trafficking? If it is, will the Minister investigate this case to understand why it happened?; On Thursday, the Brexit Secretary, when discussing the number of people coming to our country post Brexit, said: “we will assert stronger security checks at the border”—[Official Report, 12 July 2018; Vol. 644, c. 1157.]What discussions and agreements have been made with the Irish Government to strengthen the common travel area in a similar way?; I have repeatedly raised with Ministers the shameful condition of the refugee accommodation provided in my constituency by Jomast. Now it is forcing vulnerable asylum seekers into shared rooms with people wholly unrelated to them—a victim of male trafficking forced to share with an older abusive man, for example. Will the Government take action to protect those who have suffered so much or give Newcastle City Council the ability to do so?; Last Wednesday, a lady had her handbag stolen in Dunstable late at night. Although the thief was apprehended by two doorkeepers from a nearby nightclub, no police were able to attend, so the thief got away. That is just one example of the impact of “damping” on the funding of Bedfordshire police, combined with the removal of a 24/7 first responder presence. Does the Minister agree that fresh thinking is needed on how areas such as central Bedfordshire are funded, so that they can regain the 24/7 first responder presence that they have lost?; Offshore wind projects such as Rampion, off the coast of my constituency, should provide an opportunity for good jobs in Britain, but the Home Office is continuing to provide immigration rule waivers to allow crews from outside the European economic area to work here. Why is the Home Office undermining good maritime jobs off our coast?; Perseid School, in my constituency, is an outstanding special-needs school for those with severe learning difficulties, but it is hard for it to recruit special needs teachers because they were removed from the shortage occupation list in 2013. It has spent thousands trying to get a teacher from Canada. When will special needs teachers be returned to the list?; In 2016, my constituent’s son Lee Bennison was killed when a motorist collided with his motorbike. The motorist was found to be driving under the influence of drugs. Only days earlier, he had been stopped by police and had undergone blood and urine tests. The results of such tests take three weeks to come back from the lab. If roadside evidential testing for drugs had been available, Lee Bennison would be alive today. Will the Department introduce such testing?
Christopher Philip James Elmore (Labour, Centre-left): Simon Chesterman of the National Police Chiefs Council has suggested that police officers in rural communities could be routinely armed to avoid the provision of funds for specialist armed response units. Will the Minister provide the funds that those units need, rather than eroding public trust by arming police officers?