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15 Oct 2007 : Column 750W—continued
Departments: Accountancy
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what accounts directions were issued by his Department's predecessors in financial years (a) 2005-06 and (b) 2006-07. [156644]
Maria Eagle: Under the Government Resource and Accounts Act 2000 HM Treasury issue accounts directions to departments, pension schemes and agencies and under the Government Trading Fund Act 1973 to trading funds.
For the years 2005-06 and 2006-07 the Ministry of Justice and its predecessors has issued accounts directions for the form and content of resource and other accounts to the following sponsored bodies:
Legal Services Commission
Information Commissioner's Office
Office of the Legal Services Ombudsman
Office of the Legal Services Complaints Commissioner
Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
Youth Justice Board
Parole Board
Criminal Cases Review Commission
42 Probation Boards
Legal Services Commission
Information Commissioner's Office
Judicial Appointments Commission
Office of the Legal Services Ombudsman
Office of the Legal Services Complaints Commissioner
Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
Youth Justice Board
Parole Board
Criminal Cases Review Commission
42 Probation Boards
Further specific accounts directions have been issued by HM Treasury for the following sponsored bodies:
Funds in Court in England and Wales
Official Solicitor and Public Trustee in respect of Stewardship of Third Party Monies
Returning Officer's Election Expenses
National Probation Service
Driving Offences: Prosecutions
Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many drivers were prosecuted for being involved in fatal hit-and-run accidents in each of the last five years; and what the average length of sentence handed down was. [157097]
Maria Eagle: While the Department for Transport monitors details of road traffic accidents including ‘hit and run’, this information is not linked with details of any subsequent prosecutions.
Although the Court Proceedings Database held by my Department can provide sentencing data on the numbers of defendants convicted of motoring offences that cause the death of a person, the information held cannot distinguish hit and run incidents from those where the driver remained at the scene.
Feltham Young Offender Institution and Remand Centre
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 5 June 2007, Official Report, column 381W, on Feltham Young Offender Institution and Remand Centre, whether serious assaults are recorded separately from other assaults under the PSIMOn—Prison Service Information for Managers Online—system; and if he will make a statement. [157841]
Mr. Hanson: Yes, from April 2003 since when the key performance indicator for prison violence has been based on serious assaults which account for about 9 per cent. of all assault incidents. This replaced a measure based on the number of proven adjudications (the internal disciplinary process) for assaults generally. Pre and post April 2003 assault incident data cannot be readily compared.
Offenders: Females
Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to publish his response to the Corston Review of women in the penal system. [157761]
Mr. Hanson: The Government have given a broad welcome to the report. The 43 recommendations which it makes are wide-ranging and propose action by a number of different Government Departments and organisations. We are carefully exploring the best way of taking forward the recommendations with all the Departments and agencies concerned and will publish a detailed response by late autumn.
Offenders: Rehabilitation
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the expenditure was on (a) treatment and (b) rehabilitation for illegal drug users and (b) treatment and rehabilitation of people dependent on alcohol within the criminal justice system in each of the last 10 years. [157232]
Mr. Hanson: Funding allocated for those engaged in drug treatment within the Criminal Justice System is given in the following table.
Funding for rehabilitation and support services is not disaggregated by type of offence.
Funding for the provision of treatment and rehabilitation of people with an alcohol dependency is not recorded.
Prison Accommodation
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what discussions or meetings Ministers or officials in his Department had with the Home Office on the use or transfer of the Immigration Detention Estate for use in housing prisoners. [156974]
Mr. Hanson: The Ministry of Justice and the Home Office hold regular discussions on a range of estate issues.
There are no immediate plans to use or transfer any part of the Immigration Estate to prison use.
The National Offender Management Service closely monitors the prison population and continues to investigate options for providing further increases in capacity.
Prison Service: Greater London
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many appeals against dismissal have been upheld by the Prison Service Area Manager for London since he took up his post; and if he will make a statement. [157567]
Mr. Hanson: The Area Manager for London has upheld five appeals against dismissal since taking up his current post.
Prison Service: Professional Standards Unit
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 23 July 2007, Official Report, column 791W, on the Prison Service: Professional Standards Unit, (1) whether an independent appeals process is available to address concerns about the standards of a commissioning authority; and if he will make a statement; [157716]
(2) what mechanisms are in place to ensure that a commissioning authority meets its obligations and has made the appropriate quality checks; and if he will make a statement. [157717]
Mr. Hanson: Prison Service Order (PSO) 8460: Conduct and Discipline explains the mandatory requirements for all aspects of the disciplinary process, including the role and responsibilities of the commissioning manager and appeal authority. There are no formal mechanisms in place to review the actions of a commissioning manager. However, there is a right of appeal against all formal disciplinary outcomes and any concerns regarding the decisions or actions of the commissioning manager can be raised at that appeal. The appeal authority would normally be a more senior manager than the person making the original disciplinary decision.
Prisoners: European Parliament Members
Mr. MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether any special arrangements will be made for Ashley Mote MEP, to enable him to continue his European Parliamentary work whilst in prison. [157025]
Mr. Hanson: No special arrangements have been made to enable Mr. Mote to continue his work as an MEP. Mr. Mote’s status as an MEP does not entitle him to any special privileges, or to be treated differently to any other prisoner.
Prisoners: Parole
John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners have passed the date on which they are eligible for parole but have not yet been assessed; and by how many days they are overdue on average. [156985]
Mr. Hanson: The information requested is not held centrally and could be collated only by manual checking of individual case details, which would incur disproportionate cost.
Prisoners: Payments
Mr. Bellingham:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much money a prisoner is allowed to send out of his account to those outside prison in the form
of a cash disbursement; what the purpose of a prisoner cash disbursement is; what level of authorisation is required for one; whether they are used as a means of intelligence gathering at HM Prison Service establishments; and if he will make a statement. [157566]
Mr. Hanson: The Governor authorises and has discretion to decide the amount of money a prisoner can send out, having considered any security implications. The purpose of a cash disbursement is to enable prisoners to send money out of prison for a range of purposes which include providing financial support to their families. There are various means by which prisons gather intelligence and cash disbursements assist with this process.
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the potential link between prisoner cash disbursements and trafficking; and if he will make a statement. [157573]
Mr. Hanson: There has been no assessment of this potential link at a national level. However, the link between the movement of cash from a prisoner's account and possible trafficking is one line of inquiry that may be explored by staff investigating individual allegations of trafficking.
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