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Prisoners (Hunger Strikes)
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners have embarked on a hunger strike in each year since 1987; and how many (a) died and (b) gave up but suffered permanent damage to their health. [64261]
Mr. George Howarth:
Definitions and methods of recording this type of incidents have changed over time, and the Prison Service has employed the broader definition of "food refusal" since 1989. Information on incidence of food refusal prior to 1989 is not held centrally. The number of reported incidents of food refusal for each calendar year since 1989 is given in the
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table. It should be noted that the figures may include a number of incidents concerning the same prisoner. Three prisoners have died as a result of food refusal during this period.
| Year | Number of reported incidents |
|---|---|
| 1989 | 60 |
| 1990 | 78 |
| 1991 | 90 |
| 1992 | 145 |
| 1993 | 220 |
| 1994 | 306 |
| 1995 | 225 |
| 1996 | 193 |
| 1997 | 222 |
| 1998 | 198(29) |
(29) Figures as at 14 December 1998
Note:
To be recorded as a food refusal the period of refusal must exceed one day.
Police (Deaf People)
Mr. Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if his Department will issue guidance to police forces on the importance of recording on video interviews with criminal suspects whose first or preferred language is British Sign Language; [64229]
- (2) what plans he has to issue guidance about improving communication between deaf people and the police following the research report by the Home Office Police Research Group, Police and Deaf People: A Lack Of Communication. [64230]
Mr. Boateng: The report "Police and Deaf People: A Lack of Communication" was written by a police officer and published under the Police Research Award Scheme (PRAS) run by the Home Office. All PRAS publications carry a disclaimer that the recommendations are the views of the author and not necessarily those of the Home Office nor of the author's force. The report has been distributed to all United Kingdom police forces. It is for individual chief officers to decide whether the recommendations should be taken up.
It is open to chief officers to implement the recommendation in the report to video record interviews with deaf suspects where they have video recording equipment and where the suspect consents to this.
The Codes of Practice issued under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, which regulate the conduct of police interviews with suspects, contain a number of safeguards for suspects who are deaf. These include the requirement for an interpreter and for a contemporaneous written note of the interview to be made as well as an audio tape recording.
Home Office seminars are due to take place in Spring 1999 for key police personnel about the implementation of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, including dealing with people with hearing difficulties.
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Ms Lawrence:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will publish public service agreements concerning the modernisation, accountability and reform of public services; and if he will make a statement. [64968]
Mr. Byers:
We are today publishing a White Paper, "Public Services for the Future: Modernisation, Reform, Accountability" (Cm 4181).
Ms Lawrence:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about National Savings. [64790]
Ms Hewitt:
National Savings has been carrying out a wide ranging programme to modernise the organisation against the background of a fast moving and highly competitive retail savings market. This has included the evaluation of a service contract in the form of a public private partnership for operational services delivery. After detailed consideration and discussion with those involved I can announce that I have accepted the recommendation of the National Savings Management Board and given it the authority to sign a contract with Siemens Business Services. The contract will be awarded for 15 years (with a break of 10 years) and there are considerable safeguards to ensure it will serve the public interest, including rigorous standards for customer service.
This contract between National Savings and Siemens Business Services is a milestone in the Government's policy of public private partnership. It will create a new Public Service Partnership, bringing together the strengths of the two organisations to deliver real benefits to all the stakeholders involved. The public interest will be served through better service to National Savings customers, savings to the taxpayer and wider opportunities for staff. And Siemens Business Services will benefit by taking on first-rate staff who will help them build their business in the growing field of business service.
Key features of the deal are the introduction of private sector capital and expertise which will help National Savings modernise its systems and processes, and so provide more choice to customers; a commitment by Siemens Business Services to a continual programme of customer improvements; a reduction in National Savings ongoing running costs. To offset the reduction in National Savings' operational jobs stemming from the Agency's ongoing programme of investment in new technology Siemens Business Services plans to introduce new work to each of the National Savings' sites in Blackpool, Durham and Glasgow. The outlook therefore is for a materially greater number of jobs than would have been the case without the appointment of a private sector partner. Amongst the safeguards we have negotiated are a significant commitment to job creation, with an undertaking in any event to maintain a National Savings presence in each of the three locations for at least the next five years.
National Savings staff, most of whom are employed in operational services, are being told of my decision today. The operational staff will transfer employment to Siemens
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Business Services on 1 April 1999. Under TUPE, staff terms and conditions of employment are guaranteed and cannot be changed without negotiation between Siemens Business Services and the staff through their appointed Trade Unions.
National Savings' products will continue to be guaranteed by the Government who remain responsible for key decisions, including setting interest rates and terms and conditions of new products. National Savings remain in control over all key processes relating to the management of its market leading business--including policy, product design and delivering and pricing. The Chief Executive of the National Savings Executive Agency, who is also the Director of National Savings, will remain fully accountable to Ministers and to Parliament for National Savings.
This contract is in keeping with the Government's policy for public private partnerships and for modernising public services so they serve the interests of all stakeholders. This Public Service Partnership offers significant benefits to National Savings' customers and staff, and to the taxpayer, as well as to the local economies concerned.
Ms Roseanna Cunningham:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the tax relief measures for film makers introduced in 1997; what plans he has for changes to these measures; and if he will make a statement. [64451]
Dawn Primarolo:
We are continuing to assess the effectiveness of the tax measures introduced in 1997, but first indications are that it is working well. It would of course be improper for me to anticipate what may or may not be in my right hon. Friend the Chancellor's Budget.
Mr. Simon Hughes:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made on agreeing international debt relief since the G8 summit in Birmingham last May. [62751]
Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 16 December 1998]: At the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the Chancellor secured agreement on his efforts to maintain momentum towards meeting his Mauritius Mandate targets. Specifically it was agreed: to extend the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative from September 1998 to the end of 2000; to allow IMF post conflict assistance programmes to count towards a country's track record under the HIPC initiative; to move forward quickly on further proposals which recognise the special needs of post conflict countries, especially those with arrears to the International Financial Institutions; and to hold a wide-ranging review of the HIPC initiative in 1999.
The United Kingdom has recently been at the forefront of international efforts to help maintain the debt service burdens of those countries devastated by Hurricane Mitch. Following UK proposals, the International Financial Institutions have recently set up a trust fund for assistance to meet the multi-lateral debt service obligations of Nicaragua and Honduras. Last week the Paris Club of
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official bilateral creditors agreed Honduras and Nicaragua should not have to make payments to their bilateral creditors over the next three years.
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