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14 Feb 2006 : Column 1989W—continued
Prisons
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when (a) he and (b) his Ministers last visited HMP Wandsworth; what the purpose of their visit was; for how long it lasted; and if he will make a statement; [40049]
(2) when he will reply to correspondence of 10 October from the hon. Member for North West Norfolk about the junior governor at HMP Wandsworth; and what the cause is of the delay in response. [40050]
Fiona Mactaggart: Ministers have made the following visits to Wandsworth prison as part of their programme of such visits: Fiona Mactaggart on 13 September 2005 and Baroness Scotland on1 November 2005.
The hon. Member's office sent me a copy of the letter on 19 December 2005. There is no record of the original letter having been received. I replied to the hon. Member on 5 January 2006.
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) on what date (a) the Governor at HMP Wandsworth, (b) the Prison Service's Director of Operations, (c) the Director-General of the Prison Service and (d) Ministers became aware of the possession of drugs by a junior governor at HMP Wandsworth in June 2005; and if he will make a statement; [47133]
(2) who decided not to refer the case of the junior governor found in possession of drugs at HMP Wandsworth in June 2005 to the police; on what basis this decision was taken; who was consulted in making that decision; when that decision was taken; and if he will make a statement; [47135]
(3) who conducted the inquiry into the junior governor at HMP Wandsworth found in possession of drugs in June 2005; and if he will make a statement; [47136]
(4) what time elapsed between the junior governor found in possession of drugs in June 2005 being handed the drugs and handing the drugs over prior to being searched; and if he will make a statement; [47137]
(5) for how long the (a) investigation into and (b) suspension of the junior governor found in possession of drugs at HMP Wandsworth in June 2005 lasted; and if he will make a statement; [47138]
(6) whether the investigation into a junior governor found in possession of drugs at HMP Wandsworth in June 2005 was (a) formal and (b) informal; what factors were taken into account when deciding the nature of the investigation; who determined the nature of the investigation; and if he will make a statement. [47139]
Fiona Mactaggart:
The Governor of Wandsworth was made aware of the incident on 29 June 2005, as was the Area Manager for London. The Director of Operations and Director General became aware in October 2005. Ministers were informed in October 2005.
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The investigation was carried out by the Deputy Governor.
The Governor of Wandsworth took the decision not to refer the case to the police after an investigation revealed that the junior governor had been passed the small amount of drugs by a prisoner during the course of his duties and had later handed them in; there were staff and prisoner witnesses. After making his decision the Governor consulted the Area Manager who confirmed his actions.
The drugs were given to the junior governor by a prisoner on 25 June 2005, he handed them in on 29 June 2005.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners in (a) Coldingley prison and (b) England and Wales had their application for home detention curfew rejected because the victim objected to it being granted, in each of the last 10-years for which figures are available. [47405]
Fiona Mactaggart: In determining whether a prisoner will be granted Home Detention Curfew (HDC) prison governors consider the risk the prisoner poses to the victim or to members of the public, whether the prisoner's pattern of offending behaviour indicates a likelihood of re-offending during the HDC period, whether the prisoner is likely to comply with the conditions of the curfew and whether the proposed released address is suitable. Consideration of victims' concerns is an important part of the HDC suitability assessment process but Governors will not refuse to grant release to a prisoner purely on the basis that the victim objects to the release.
Where a prisoner is otherwise suitable for release on HDC and is subject to supervision, licence conditions can be set which prevent the offender making any contact with the victim or entering the victim's local area.
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the (a) highest, (b) lowest and (c) average inmate population of Woodhill prison in Milton Keynes (i) for each of the last five years and (ii) over the whole five-year period. [47420]
Fiona Mactaggart: The information requested, as recorded on the Prison Service IT system, is provided in the table.
| Average | Highest | Lowest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 655 | 676 | 638 |
| 2002 | 743 | 774 | 705 |
| 2003 | 767 | 791 | 754 |
| 2004 | 770 | 792 | 743 |
| 2005 | 762 | 772 | 748 |
| Whole period, 2001–05 | 740 | 792 | 638 |
Note:
That these figures relate to the population at end month.
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the impact of mandatory drug testing on the supply of controlled drugs into the prison estate at each prison establishment; and if he will make a statement. [48418]
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Fiona Mactaggart: A comprehensive range of measures is in place to reduce the supply of drugs in each prison of which the mandatory drug testing (MDT) programme is one element. It is not possible to assess precisely the impact of anyone component in isolation. Overall, the positive MDT rate nationally has halved since 1997.
Research has shown that mandatory drug testing does exert a deterrent effect on drug misuse particularly on cannabis misuse.
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Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average number of hours of time out of cell was on (a) weekdays and (b) weekends in each prison establishment in each of the last five years. [48689]
Fiona Mactaggart: The tables show the average time out of cell hours for each establishment over the last five years on (a) weekdays and (b) weekends. The 2005–06 figures show time unlocked up to the third quarter of the financial year 2005–06.
(64) Up to December 2005
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(65) Up to December 2005
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Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners in (a) England and (b) London who had completed education training and employment upon release (i) gained employment for over 12 months, (ii) experienced long-term unemployment and (iii) returned to prison in the last five years. [48704]
Fiona Mactaggart: The Home Office does not routinely record the post-release outcomes of prisoners.
While the Home Office does record the numbers of prisoners returning to prison within two years of release (39 per cent. of adult males and 32 per cent. of adult females released in 2001), this is not broken down by whether they completed an Education Training and Employment (ETE) programme in prison.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of prisoners was in each category on 31 March in each of the last five years. [48792]
Fiona Mactaggart: The percentage of prisoners by category (A, B, C, D, Other") on 31 March 2005 and the previous two years is shown in the following table. The information is not held prior to 2003.
| Percentage | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 March 2003 | 31 March 2004 | 31 March 2005 | |
| Cat As | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Cat Bs | 12 | 11 | 11 |
| Cat Cs | 43 | 44 | 45 |
| Cat Ds | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Other population | 38 | 37 | 36 |
| Total population | 100 | 100 | 100 |
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