| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
23 Feb 2009 : Column 357W—continued
Prisons: Wind Power
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will commission research on the effect on (a) prison security, (b) the well-being and health of prisoners and (c) the safety and health of prison staff from (i) noise from, (ii) vibration from and (iii) movement of wind turbines sited close to prisons. [257075]
Mr. Hanson: As I said in my answer of 5 February 2009, Official R eport, column 1403W, the Departments for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, and Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, are responsible for Government policy on wind turbines and therefore for research about their impact on residential property and businesses in close proximity to them. The National Offender Management Service already reviews the security implications of wind turbines sited close to prisons and will conduct appropriate health and safety risk assessments on wind turbines that are already in place.
Welsh Language
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many members of staff at each grade in his Department identify themselves as Welsh speakers. [257794]
Mr. Malik: In an informal survey of 1,350 staff in Her Majesty’s Courts Service in 2007, staff indicated a range of ability, from being able to meet and greet in Welsh to those who are fluent both verbally and in writing. This informal exercise did not ascertain proficiency levels on a grade basis; such analysis is not available.
Her Majesty's Courts Service has not carried out a subsequent survey and there has been no Ministry of Justice wide data gathering exercise in this regard.
All Tribunals Service staff at hearing centres in Wales are trained to meet and greet in Welsh, including answering the telephone. The Tribunals Service has not undertaken a formal survey of staff to indicate the range of ability from being able to meet and greet in Welsh to those who are fluent in the language, both verbally and in writing.
Information on which languages are spoken by staff in the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is not held centrally. To collect the information would incur disproportionate cost. However, there was a voluntary survey undertaken in NOMS Cymru HQ and public sector prisons in Wales last year. Out of 1,035 surveyed, 247 responded on Welsh language of which 11 per cent. (27) indicated that they could speak Welsh and 4 per cent. (10) that it was their first language.
The two probation trusts in Wales each have their own Welsh Language scheme approved by the Welsh Language Board.
Winchester Prison: Drugs
Mr. Oaten:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners at HM Prison Winchester were
serving sentences for drug-related offences in each of the last five years; and how many incidents of drug use in the prison were recorded in each of those years. [258031]
Mr. Hanson: The following table gives the numbers of sentenced drugs offenders in Winchester as at 30 June each year since 2004:
| Number of prisoners serving sentences for drugs offences at Winchester prison 2004-08 | |
| Number as at 30 June | |
The increase in 2006 was as a result of a local police operation.
These numbers relate to specific drugs offences only (including the possession and supply of drugs) and not to other offences (such as those involving acquisitive crime) which may be related to drugs issues of the offender.
Drug misuse in prisons is measured by mandatory drug testing. The table details the number of positive random and targeted mandatory drug tests occurring at HMP Winchester in each of the last five complete financial years.
| Mandatory drug tests at HMP Winchester | |
| Financial year | Number of positive tests |
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Winchester Prison: Finance
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the budget for Winchester Prison was in each of the last five years. [258028]
Mr. Hanson: The budgets for HM Prison Winchester for the last five years were:
| £ | |
The reduction in budgets for 2007-08 and 2008-09 reflects the fact that a wing was taken out of use for refurbishment during this time. The wing was brought back into use in November 2008.
Winchester Prison: Suicide
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners at HM Prison Winchester (a) committed suicide and (b) self-harmed in each of the last five years. [258030]
Mr. Hanson: The number of prisoner self-inflicted deaths and self harm at HM Prison Winchester are summarised in the table. To avoid any potential ambiguity both self harm incidents and numbers of individual self harmers are shown.
| Self-inflicted deaths and self harm( 1) at HMP Winchester | |||
| Self-inflicted deaths( 2) | Self harm incidents | Individual self harmers | |
| (1) Information on self harm is derived from a high volume administrative system. The numbers have limited accuracy and should be treated as approximate. (2) One further self-inflicted has occurred at HM Prison Winchester so far in 2009. | |||
Young Offender Institutions
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the redesignation of HM Prison/Young Offender Institution (HMP/YOI) Drake Hall and HM Prison Morton Hall will have on (a) the distance from home, (b) resettlement programmes, (c) community links and (d) re-offending rates of those female prisoners held in (i) HMP/YOI Drake Hall who have been assessed as suitable for semi-open conditions, (ii) HM Prison Morton Hall who have been assessed as suitable for semi-open conditions, (iii) closed conditions in the female estate and (iv) open conditions in the female estate; and if he will make a statement. [258088]
Mr. Hanson: The re-designation of HM Prison and Young Offender Institution Drake Hall and HM Prison and Young Offender Institution Morton Hall as closed prisons will allow the Prison Service to more properly provide for the needs of women suitable for each of the prisons. The effect of the change will allow for greater flexibility in the use of the estate; improving closeness to home and families for some women, allowing appropriate lifer and indeterminate sentenced women to be placed so as to better meet their needs, and in general enable more women to access the resettlement regimes available at the two prisons. There are no plans to move any of the women out of Drake Hall and Morton Hall as a result of the change. The change is essentially an administrative one, both establishments will retain their current levels of internal and perimeter security and their current resettlement regimes, including their roles as specialist foreign national centres. Women suitable for “open” or “closed” conditions will be able to go these prisons if such a move meets their resettlement needs.
The changes are compatible with Baroness Corston’s recommendation.
Young Offender Institutions: Nationality
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders held in (a) HM Prison/Young Offender Institution Drake Hall and (b) HM Prison Morton Hall are (i) UK and (ii) foreign nationals. [258087]
Mr. Hanson: The following table gives the numbers of foreign national and British national prisoners held in Drake Hall and Morton Hall as at the end of December 2008.
| Establishment | ||
| Drake Hall | Morton Hall | |
These figures have been taken from the Ministry of Justice published monthly briefing which can be accessed at the following website, where the foreign national prisoner statistics are updated quarterly:
The population breakdowns by nationality have been scaled and also rounded to the nearest whole number; individual components may not sum to the totals.
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |