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21 May 2009 : Column 1579W—continued
Prisoners
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) male and (b) female prisoners on whole life tariffs are in (i) Category B, (ii) Category C and (iii) Category D prisons. [276659]
Mr. Hanson: There are currently seven male prisoners serving whole life tariffs within in category B and less than five in category C. There are no whole life tariff prisoners in category D prisons.
There are no female prisoners serving a whole life tariff in closed, semi-open or open prisons.
Prisoners: Males
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many male prisoners were categorised as category (a) A, (b) B, (c) C and (d) D in each month since January 2008. [276037]
Mr. Straw: The following table shows the number of male prisoners held as Category A in each month since January 2008.
The information requested on the number of adult male prisoners categorised as Category B, C and D is not recorded centrally. To provide this would require contacting individual prison establishments, which could be done only at disproportionate cost.
| Number of prisoners categorised as Category A—January 2008 to April 2009 | |
| Month | Monthly total |
Prisoners: Religion
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will publish the text of Prison Service Order 4550 on religion in the form it took before its amendment by Prison Service Instruction 2009-016. [276660]
Mr. Hanson: The Prison Service Order (PSO) 4550 Religion remains extant and has been amended by Prison Service Instruction (PSI) 16/2009. A hard copy of all PSOs and PSIs is sent to the House of Commons Library and a copy of the original document can be found there. Copies of current PSOs and PSIs may be found on the Prison Service website:
A PSO only expires when it is revised or revoked; it is usual, when revised, for the PSO to then be replaced. PSIs are temporary documents that contain mandatory actions and are often issued to introduce amendments to PSOs. I am happy to send the hon. Member a copy of the previous and the current documents.
Prisons: Barking and Dagenham
Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many representations have been made to his Department in opposition to the proposed construction of a prison at Beam Park West; [275824]
(2) what arrangements his Department made for public consultation prior to the decision to build a prison on the Beam Park West site. [275936]
Mr. Straw: We have received a small number of representations opposing the prison development at Beam Park West.
We will discuss with my hon. Friend and with representatives from the London Thames Gateway and the London borough of Barking and Dagenham the scope, location, date and time of a public exhibition to be held prior to the submission of planning permission. We will also discuss with them which specific groups of local people, councillors and others should receive a special presentation to.
Prisons: Construction
Mr. Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether New Hall Farm Lea, near Preston and Kirkham, has been under consideration by his Department as a site for a new prison; whether it is still under consideration; and if he will make a statement. [276531]
Mr. Hanson: As my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Justice announced on 27 April 2009, Official Report, columns 569-80, we will not be proceeding with the 2,500 place “Titan” prisons, but we will be building 1,500 place prisons instead.
The site at New Hall Farm Lea was one of a number of sites brought to the attention of the National Offender Management Service as part of the site search exercise for “Titan” prisons to hold 2,500 prisoners. It was assessed, but not considered suitable for development as a Titan. There are no current plans for prisons on any of the sites listed other than those named in Parliament on 27 April.
Prisons: Discipline
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 8 May 2009, Official Report, columns 483-84W, on prisons: discipline, which prisons in England and Wales do not have officers qualified to act as Tornado support. [275413]
Mr. Straw: As of 18 May, a total of 23 prisons in England and Wales have no permanent trained staff on site who are qualified to act as Tornado support, either because of the size of the establishment, or because of the prison's security category and characteristics. Arrangements are in place for nearby prisons to provide Tornado qualified staff to these establishments should this be necessary.
Prisons: Mental Health Services
Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners in (a) England and (b) Leeds have been transferred from prison to a secure mental health unit in each of the last three years. [276555]
Mr. Hanson: The number of prisoners in England and Leeds who have been transferred from prison to a secure mental health unit in each of the last three years is set out in the table.
| England | Leeds | |
Reoffenders
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the re-offending rate was for people who (a) received reprimands, (b) were subject to dispersal orders and (c) received custodial sentences in (i) Wales, (ii) England, (iii) Dyfed Powys police area, (iv) Gwent police area, (v) South Wales police area and (vi) North Wales police area in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [266083]
Mr. Hanson:
The Government are committed to tackling youth crime across the country. We published the Youth Crime Action Plan in July 2008 which is a comprehensive analysis of what further we need to do to tackle youth crime. It sets out a ‘triple track’ approach of enforcement
and punishment where behaviour is unacceptable, non-negotiable support and challenge where it is most needed, and better and earlier prevention.
The rates of reoffending in England and Wales of juveniles receiving a reprimand or final warning for the last three years for which data are available are shown in Table 1.
| Table 1: Reoffending of juveniles receiving reprimands and final warnings, 2004, 2005, 2006 | |||
| Cohort | Number of offenders | Proportion of offenders reoffending (percentage) | Number of offences per 100 offenders |
Disaggregated data for reprimands and final warnings are not collated. These data cannot be broken down by geographical area.
The Ministry of Justice does not collate data on reoffending by offenders given dispersal orders.
The rate of reoffending in England and Wales of juvenile offenders released from custody for the last three years for which data are available are shown in Table 2.
| Table 2: Reoffending of juveniles discharged from custody, 2004, 2005, 2006 | |||
| Cohort | Number of offenders | Proportion of offenders reoffending (percentage) | Number of offences per 100 offenders |
These data cannot be broken down by geographical area.
While juveniles released from custody have the highest reoffending rates, between 2000 to 2006, we have seen a 16.2 per cent. fall in the frequency rate of reoffending of juveniles (both male and female) released from custody. The Government have pledged additional funding of over £100 million for measures which will cut youth crime in the short-term and prevent it in the long-term.
Regimes in the under-18 secure estate reflect the principal aim of the youth justice system, which is to prevent offending. All young offender institutions accommodating under 18 year olds are required to put in place a local strategy that will deliver a portfolio of programmes to address the offending behaviour and associated needs of the young people. For every young person, an individual assessment is undertaken to identify the factors that have contributed to their offending and that will need to be addressed in order to reduce the risk of re-offending when they are released into the community.
The rates of reoffending in England and Wales of adult offenders released from custody for the last three years for which data are available are shown in Table 3.
| Table 3: Reoffending of adults discharged from custody, 2004, 2005, 2006 | |||
| Cohort | Number of offenders | Proportion of offenders reoffending (percentage) | Number of offences per 100 offenders |
Data on the reoffending of adults under probation supervision broken down by probation area and local authority (upper tier only) are now available. For further details please see ‘Local reoffending results 1 October 2007-30 September 2008 England and Wales’ available at
This is the first time that reoffending data at the local level have been made available.
Sentencing
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what individuals sentenced to two months custody or less served in custody during each of the last five years. [275489]
Mr. Hanson: The average time served in days, including time on remand, for all prisoners sentenced to two months or less is shown in the following table.
| Average time served (days) | |
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.
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