The European Agenda on Security is a European Commission communication, and has no legal force or application to the UK. Where there are individual Justice and Home Affairs measures, the Government will take an opt-in decision on a case-by-case basis, putting the national interest at the heart of the decision making process. The UK has a national counter terrorism strategy, CONTEST, which informs its counter terrorism activity. The Home Office engages closely with policy makers and practitioners elsewhere to share expertise.

Project Griffin is the national counter-terrorism awareness initiative for business produced by the National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) to protect our cities and communities from the threat of terrorism. Since 2004, Project Griffin has held briefing events to increase public and staff awareness of how best to reduce and respond to the most likely types of terrorist activities.

In 2015-16 these events were delivered to around 100,000 individuals. On 20 April, NaCTSO launched a new Griffin initiative to offer organisations the opportunity to self-deliver this training, and further increase awareness.

The National Counter Terrorism Security Office is funded from the Counter Terrorism Policing Grant. We do not provide breakdowns of this funding for security reasons. As well as the work of the National Counter Terrorism Security Office, Project Griffin is promoted through a variety of other mechanisms including by police Counter Terrorism Security Advisers and Counter Terrorism Awareness Advisers, who are employed in every region to raise awareness with businesses of the terrorist threat, appropriate responses to take, and mitigation measures

Home Office Ministers and officials have regular meetings and attend various events as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings and events.

The Home Office has not pursued legal action against GEO for its performance in managing Harmondsworth immigration removal centre (IRC). Under the terms of the contract signed on 20th January 2009, deductions were made from payments to GEO for performance-related service credits and dilapidation costs.

The Home Office has not pursued legal action against GEO for its performance in managing Harmondsworth immigration removal centre (IRC). Under the terms of the contract signed on 20th January 2009, deductions were made from payments to GEO for performance-related service credits and dilapidation costs.

In line with our longstanding practice, it would be inappropriate to comment further on operational matters.

It is vital that we tackle the threat from automatic and high powered semi-automatic firearms, including their movement across Europe. My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Home Secretary, attended an extraordinary meeting of the European Justice and Home Affairs Council on Friday, where she pressed for greater action on this issue. Since the terrorist attacks in Paris in January, the Home Secretary has consistently intervened at meetings of the Justice and Home Affairs Council urging EU partners to take prompt and effective action to reduce the threat from illegal firearms. My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Immigration Minister (James Brokenshire), has also highlighted the importance of action on firearms to Europol.

The data requested can be found in the accompanying table.

The Home Office does not hold this data centrally. The Home Office collects data on the number of people arrested for drug offences and on the number stopped and searched on suspicion of drug offences. However, cannabis possession offences cannot be separately identified. These data are published in the annual Police Powers and Procedures statistical publication, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-powers-and-procedures-england-and-wales

The next release is scheduled for Thursday 19th November and will cover the period up to the year ending 31 March 2015.

The Home Office does not hold this data centrally. The Home Office collects data on the number of people arrested for drug offences and on the number stopped and searched on suspicion of drug offences. However, cannabis possession offences cannot be separately identified. These data are published in the annual Police Powers and Procedures statistical publication, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-powers-and-procedures-england-and-wales

The next release is scheduled for Thursday 19th November and will cover the period up to the year ending 31 March 2015.

It is not possible at the moment to say how many vulnerable individuals and families will be resettled in specific areas across the UK. Our existing policy, based on the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 drawn up by the last Labour Government, is aimed at ensuring that asylum seekers and refugees are dispersed across the country so that no individual local authority bears a disproportionate share of the burden. We are working closely with a wide range of partners, including local authorities and civil society organisations, to ensure that this remains the case.

Serco is one of three providers who operate under the COMPASS contracts to provide accommodation for destitute asylum seekers. There is currently no intention of providing accommodation for the expanded resettlement scheme through the COMPASS contracts.

We cannot divulge the payments made under the COMPASS contracts for reasons of commercial sensitivity.

However, the costs of the COMPASS contracts were anticipated at the time of procurement to be £172 million in the North West of England, and £82 million in Scotland and Northern Ireland. These costs relate to the full seven year life of the contracts.

As the Prime Minister said in his statement to the House (7 Sep 2015: Column 26), it would be inappropriate to comment further.

We have not undertaken any assessment of how individual police forces respond to reported burglaries. This Government are clear that all crimes reported to the police should be taken seriously, investigated and, where appropriate, taken through the courts and met with tough sentences. Decisions on individual investigations are an operational matter for chief constables, based on the evidence available to them.

Estimates of opium cultivation in each of the last 10 years in Afghanistan are based on the Opium Survey carried out on a yearly basis by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. The table below outlines the findings of the survey since 2005.

The Government works with the Afghan authorities and international partners to target action against opium trafficking networks, rather than provide funding for programmes specifically focussed on opium production. Figures specifically relating to funding to tackle opium production are therefore not available.

The Government does not collate centrally information in respect of the cost of the former Gwent Police Authority or the Gwent Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC).

Under the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011, it is the responsibility of PCCs to determine how each police area’s funding settlement is allocated, including setting the police force budget and the running of the PCC’s office.

The 2011 Act specifies that PCCs must publish key information as prescribed by the Secretary of State. The Elected Local Policing Bodies (Specified Information) Order 2011 (and amended in 2012) sets out what information must be published: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2011/3050/contents/made

The publication of this information enables the local electorate to judge whether the PCC is making the best use of public money at the ballot box.

PCCs perform a completely different role from the old Police Authorities. PCCs are providing accountable, visible leadership, and making a real difference to policing locally. Not only have they brought real local accountability to how Chief Constables and their forces perform, they are working hard to ensure that their local communities have a stronger voice in policing.

The Home Affairs Select Committee recognised in their 2014 report that individual police and crime commissioners are providing greater clarity of leadership for policing in their areas, and are increasingly recognised for the strategic direction they are providing. In contrast, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary found, in 2010, that only four of the 22 police authorities inspected were judged to have performed well in two of their primary functions: setting strategic direction and ensuring value for money.

There has been a long term downward trend in overall drug use over the last decade including among young people aged 11-15 and young adults aged 16-24. However, we continue to be concerned about the harms caused by drug misuse, including ecstasy and other Class A drugs, which is why they are illegal.

The UK’s approach on drugs remains clear: we must prevent drug use in our communities, help dependent individuals recover, while ensuring our drugs laws are enforced. We have recently refreshed our approach to reducing the demand for drugs which includes investing in a range of evidence-based programmes, which have a positive impact on young people and adults, giving them the confidence, resilience and risk management skills to resist drug use.

For example: • we have launched a new online resilience building resource, ‘Rise Above’, aimed at 11- to 16-year-olds, which provides tools to help develop skills to make positive choices for their health, including avoiding drug use;

• we have developed evidence-based online tools for educators and commissioners including the Alcohol and Drug Education and Prevention Information Service (ADEPIS) which provides practical advice and tools based on the best international evidence, including briefing sheets for teachers; and

• Public Health England has developed its role in supporting local areas: sharing evidence to support commissioning and the delivery of effective public health prevention activities; and launching toolkits to support local areas’ responses on specific issues around new psychoactive substances and other drug groups.

There has been a long term downward trend in overall drug use over the last decade including among young people aged 11-15 and young adults aged 16-24. However, we continue to be concerned about the harms caused by drug misuse, including ecstasy and other Class A drugs, which is why they are illegal.

The UK’s approach on drugs remains clear: we must prevent drug use in our communities, help dependent individuals recover, while ensuring our drugs laws are enforced. We have recently refreshed our approach to reducing the demand for drugs which includes investing in a range of evidence-based programmes, which have a positive impact on young people and adults, giving them the confidence, resilience and risk management skills to resist drug use.

For example: • we have launched a new online resilience building resource, ‘Rise Above’, aimed at 11- to 16-year-olds, which provides tools to help develop skills to make positive choices for their health, including avoiding drug use;

• we have developed evidence-based online tools for educators and commissioners including the Alcohol and Drug Education and Prevention Information Service (ADEPIS) which provides practical advice and tools based on the best international evidence, including briefing sheets for teachers; and

• Public Health England has developed its role in supporting local areas: sharing evidence to support commissioning and the delivery of effective public health prevention activities; and launching toolkits to support local areas’ responses on specific issues around new psychoactive substances and other drug groups.

The Impact Assessment to the Psychoactive Substances Bill gives estimated costs of enforcement on the criminal justice system. Existing resources are already being used by the police and trading standards officers to tackle the supply of new psychoactive substances using legislation not specifically designed for this purpose.

The Impact Assessment anticipates that, once the Bill is enacted, very few establishments will continue to sell psychoactive substances, so the total enforcement costs are expected to be minimal. This follows the experience of Ireland which enacted a similar bill.