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HOME DEPARTMENT
Learmont Report
Sir Trevor Skeet: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in implementing the recommendations of the Learmont report. [40082]
Mr. George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Prison Service
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submission on the Learmont report was first submitted to his Department for consideration. [35862]
Miss Widdecombe: My right hon. and learned Friend asked the Prison Service to examine the operational impact and effectiveness of the Learmont recommendations. The Prison Service has made a number of submissions on various aspects of the Learmont report since it was published on 16 October 1995. Some Learmont recommendations called for fundamental reviews of policy. My right hon. and learned Friend has yet to receive the findings of all these major reviews.
Mr. Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if there will be a period of consultation following the Government's statement on the implementation of the Learmont report. [35867]
Miss Widdecombe: Our response to the Learmont report and any associated arrangements are still under consideration.
Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what is his latest estimate of the date of publication for his response to the Learmont report; and if he will make a statement; [36486]
- (2) what measures are being taken to assess the cost of full implementation of the Learmont report; and if he will make a statement. [36679]
Mr. Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to devolve greater responsibility to area managers in the Prison Service in respect of (i) corporate planning, (ii) service delivery, (iii) resource management and (iv) budgets and to develop links from area managers to board level through operational directors; [37773]
- (2) what plans he has, and at what cost, to ensure that annual training for all staff in the Prison Service is increased to 14 days over the next five years; [37772]
(3) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to establish core competencies, for training purposes for all grades in the Prison Service; [37770]
(4) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to ensure that work managers operate from an office on their wing; [37778]
(5) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to ensure that those remand category A prisoners who cannot be held in dispersal prisons are held in other prisons with accommodation to category A standard; [37766]
(6) what plans he has to introduce overlocking and permanent movement systems to the dispersal prison estate; [37774]
(7) what plans he has to increase the amount of (a) training and (b) enhanced training staff in dispersal prisons undergo; [37731]
(8) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to ensure that prisoner programmes are adopted nationally, and that each sentenced prisoner serving more than 12 months has a sentence plan and is allocated a personal officer; [37768]
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(9) what progress has been made in respect of the security of prisoners' property on transfer; [37776]
(10) what progress has been made with the Prison Service headquarters security survey on electronic security defences; what (i) technical problems and (ii) remedial work have been identified; and what plans he has over what time scale and at what cost to address these matters; [37764]
(11) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to provide leadership and management training to line managers in the Prison Service; [37771]
(12) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to ensure that the Prison Service is able to provide suitable accommodation for high-risk women prisoners and young offenders; [37767]
(13) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, in respect of the role of wing managers in prisons; [37775]
(14) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, (i) to improve security standards in the prison estate and (ii) to provide closed circuit television and other appropriate facilities at the entrance of dispersal prisons; [37763]
(15) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to ensure that an accreditation, system on the basis of performance measurement against national standards is introduced into the Prison Service; [37769]
(16) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to improve selection procedures for staff for dispersal prisons; [37777]
(17) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to provide a supporting secretariat to (i) the head of operations and security and (ii) the governing governor in the Prison Service; [37761]
(18) what plans he has, over what time scale and at what cost, to ensure that the option of imposing closed visits is available in all secure establishments; [37765]
(19) when he expects to make a statement on the implementation of the Learmont report; [35868]
(20) pursuant to his answer of 10 July, Official Report, column 170, what estimates have been received for the minimum security standards which are under consideration; if he will set out each of the phases of the programme to develop minimum security standards; and when the work to reach a decision on the appropriate minimum security standards will be complete. [37760]
Miss Widdecombe: Details of steps taken by the Prison Service to improve its performance are contained in the interim progress report on the "Review of Prison Service Security in England and Wales and the escape from Parkhurst Prison on Tuesday 3 January 1995--The Learmont Inquiry" given in a table, copies of which have been placed in the Library. The progress report excludes those recommendations identical or very similar to those of the Woodcock report which my right hon. and learned Friend accepted on 19 December 1994. The table gives details of the recommendations already implemented. Six reviews are still in progress in respect of
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recommendations: 1, 88, 97, 98, 101, 107. The remaining recommendations are still under consideration.
I shall report to the House on outstanding issues in due course.
The Prison Service has initiated a wide-ranging programme of action to build on the improvement in its performance in security, including measures taken in response to the recommendations of the Woodcock and Learmont reports.
The Prison Service has pressed ahead with upgrading the high security dispersal estate to standards recommended in the Woodcock report--a programme which Sir John Learmont included in his recommendations. In his review of Prison Service progress towards implementing the Woodcock report, Sir John Learmont reported in December 1995 that
The security manual has been redrafted emphasising the distinction between what is mandatory and what is discretionary.
The Prison Service has made excellent progress to ensure that security measures are consistently observed.
The Prison Service has strengthened independent security audit which it had in hand before the Whitemoor escape in recognition of the major contribution it has to make to improving security standards.
The Prison Service has pressed ahead with a number of organisational changes designed to ensure that operational management of prisons can be carried out more effectively.
In addition to those reviews still in progress and referred to above, the Prison Service has completed 10 reviews, the conclusions of which are under consideration.
Mr. Austin Mitchell:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish a list showing the number, nature and value of contracts awarded, by his Department to Coopers and Lybrand, KPMG, Price Waterhouse, Ernst and Young, Deloitte and Touche, Arthur Andersen, Grant Thonrton, BDO Stoy Hayward, Pannell Kerr Forster, and Robson Rhodes, and their subsidiaries and associates, during 1995 and 1996. [37325]
Mr. Howard:
For the period specified, information on the number and nature of contracts let to each listed company and the total sum paid to each company by my Department is given in the table. Individual contract values are not given on the grounds of commercial confidentiality.
The Prison Service has achieved a sharp reduction in the number of escapes. Escapes in 1995-96 were 59 per cent. down on those in 1994-95 and 79 per cent. down compared to 1992-93.
"in a period of less than a year, the Prison Service has made infinitely more headway in implementing the Woodcock recommendations than it seems reasonable to expect".
| Consultant | Nature | Total value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 April to date | ||
| Coopers and Lybrand and Subsidiaries and Associates | Strategy development Underpinning and modelling accountancy work | (62)£15,143 |
| KPMG and Subsidiaries and Associates | Audit of procurement procedures Consultancy database Consultancy support quantum Job evaluation consultancy | £443,625 |
| Price Waterhouse and Subsidiaries and Associates | Seminar | (62)-- |
| Ernst and Young and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Deloitte and Touche and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Arthur Andersen and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Grant Thornton and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| BDO Stoy Hayward and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Pannell Kerr Forster and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Robson Rhodes and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| 1995-1996 | ||
| Coopers and Lybrand and Subsidiaries and Associates | Private Finance Initiative Consultancy Support Advice and project support Assessment pay services business strategy Strategy development Project management Customer survey Consultancy Underpinning and modelling accountancy work | (62)525,630 |
| KPMG and Subsidiaries and Associates | Review of Emergency Planning College Identification of competencies of probation officers Accountancy support | (62)69,818 |
| Price Waterhouse and Subsidiaries and Associates | Consultancy Pilot study in number of area probation services | (62)222,364 |
| Ernst and Young and Subsidiaries and Associates | Review of management structure for National Strategy for Police Information Systems Project (NSPIS) Consultancy | (62)47,500 |
| Deloite and Touche and Subsidiaries and Associates | Review of United Kingdom Passport Agency offices Consultancy Research | (62)125,165 |
| Arthur Andersen and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Grant Thornton and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| BDO Stoy Hayward and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Pannell Kerr Forster and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
| Robson Rhodes and Subsidiaries and Associates | -- | -- |
(62) Individual contract values are not given on the grounds of commercial confidentiality.
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