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Prisons: Visiting Minister of Religion
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What documentation may be required of the nominating authority by governors of Her Majesty's prisons in the process of approving visiting ministers, and why some prisons and not others are demanding original birth certificates or passports.
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Blatch): Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter to Lord Avebury from the Director General of the Prison Service, Mr. Richard Tilt.
- Lady Blatch has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the documentation required for security clearing prospective visiting ministers to prisons.
All staff who work in a prison, including those who are not employed by the service, are required to be cleared to the appropriate level for the establishment and type of work which they carry out. Since November 1994 all visiting ministers of religion have been nominated to governors locally. Before they commence duties they should undergo the normal pre-appointment checks and the guidance issued to recruiters on making these appointments refers to this requirement.
In March 1995 basic checks were introduced following the outcome of the Cabinet Office's review of protective security. These provide that those who make appointments to the Civil Service seek evidence of an individual's identity as well as taking up personal and employers' references. The means of identity can be passports or birth certificates, but cover other means of identification. The appointing authority is required to seek original documents and verify that they have done so. Individual governors are responsible for ensuring that these requirements are followed.
Community Service
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How many hours of community service by offenders have been imposed by the courts in each year since the community service for offenders system came into force.
Baroness Blatch: Community service orders were introduced by the Criminal Justice Act 1972. A few probation areas introduced arrangements for community service in 1973 and other probation areas followed in subsequent years, with the last probation area in England and Wales introducing the necessary arrangements in 1979. Combination orders and community service for breach of a community sentence were introduced in the Criminal Justice Act 1991 starting in October 1992.
| England and Wales | Hours (millions) |
| 1973 | (1)0.1 |
| 1974 | (1)0.1 |
| 1975 | 0.3 |
| 1976 | 1.1 |
| 1977 | 1.4 |
| 1978 | 1.8 |
| 1979 | 2.1 |
| 1980 | 3.1 |
| 1981 | 3.9 |
| 1982 | 4.2 |
| 1983 | (1)4.5 |
| 1984 | (1)4.8 |
| 1985 | 4.8 |
| 1986 | 4.6 |
| 1987 | 4.6 |
| 1988 | 4.6 |
| 1989 | 4.4 |
| 1990 | 4.8 |
| 1991 | 5.0 |
| 1992 | 5.3 |
| 1993 | 6.7 |
| 1994 | 7.2 |
| 1995 | 7.2 |
(1) Estimated from total numbers of community service orders given.
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
Baroness Blatch: Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter to Lord Marlesford from the Director General of the Prison Service, Mr. Richard Tilt.
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether it is their policy to release to the media photographs of any category A or category B prisoners who escape from custody.
Lady Blatch has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the release to the media of photographs of any category A or category B prisoners who escape from custody.
It is not the policy of the Prison Service to issue any photographs of escaped prisoners to the media. The Prison Service provide photographs to the police, who, after considering the tactical and strategical merits of each individual case, may decide that to issue them to the media will assist them with their enquiries and the successful recapture of the prisoners concerned.
What arrangements exist, or are proposed, to inform Parliament or the public of the conclusions of any official inquiry into the escape from custody of category A or category B prisoners.
14 Nov 1996 : Column WA115
Baroness Blatch: Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter to Lord Marlesford from the Director General of the Prison Service, Mr. Richard Tilt.
- Lady Blatch has asked me to reply to your recent Question about what arrangements exist, or are proposed, to inform Parliament or the public of the conclusions of any official enquiry into the escape from custody of category A or category B prisoners.
Reports commissioned by the Prison Service into escapes are internal confidential documents and are not usually published. This is in line with longstanding government policy. The recent report on the enquiry into the escape from Blundeston is an internal confidential Prison Service document and will not be published.
Reports into escape enquiries which are commissioned outside the Prison Service may be published at the discretion of the Home Secretary.
Prisoners' Complaints
Lord Lester of Herne Hill asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the "prior ventilation rule", whereby prisoners could not complain to Members of Parliament or legal advisers about prison treatment until they had ventilated their complaints through normal internal channels, was abolished, with effect from 1st December 1981, so as to give effect to the report of the European Human Rights Commission and the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in Silver and Others v United Kingdom; and, if not, what was the reason for abolishing that rule.
Baroness Blatch: Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter to Lord Lester of Herne Hill from the Director General of the Prison Service, Mr. Richard Tilt.
- Lady Blatch has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the "prior ventilation rule".
Present guidance on the expression of grievances and on letters to Members of Parliament and legal advisers is contained in a revised Standing Order 5 and in the manual "Prisoners' Requests/Complaints
Procedures". Copies of both publications are available to prisoners and are also held in the Library of the House.Soviet Military Capabilities: Intelligence Assessment
Lord Jenkins of Putney asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they agree with the report of The Times Defence Correspondent of 21st October 1996 that Western intelligence agencies exaggerated the capabilities of the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Earl Howe): Within my department, I am satisfied that the Defence Intelligence Staff and its predecessors who were responsible for assessing Soviet military capabilities during the Cold War had no systemic tendency to exaggerate these capabilities. Soviet secretiveness made assessment of the military capabilities of the USSR a difficult task, particularly in the early post-war years; the relative accuracy of some assessments reflected these problems.
Housing Act 1996: Parts VI and VII Commencement
Lord Brougham and Vaux asked Her Majesty's Government:
- When they propose to make an order to commence Parts VI and VII of the Housing Act 1996.
The Minister of State, Department of the Environment (Earl Ferrers): My right honourable friend, the Minister for Local Government, Housing and Urban Regeneration will be making the order that commences these provisions in England and Wales shortly. Part VII will commence on 20th January 1997. Part VI will commence on 1st April 1997; this will give local authorities additional time to set up effective new allocation schemes.
Central and Local Government: Information Flows
Lord Rodney asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What plans they have to publish the outcome of their recent efficiency scrutiny into information flows between central and local government.
Earl Ferrers: We have today published for consultation the report of an efficiency scrutiny into information flows between central and local government in England.
We are determined to cut the burden of paperwork generated by the demands for information from local government. This report makes a number of challenging
recommendations for both central and local government which aim to cut the paper flow by up to one third, making savings of £8 million to £10 million a year, as well as delivering improvements in the accuracy and value of the information.We will look carefully at the report's recommendations and, following consultation with local government, will prepare, and publish in the New Year, an action plan for implementing the report. As the report recognises, improvements are already happening. Today's publication will give a welcome boost to that work.
My right honourable friend the Minister for Local Government, Housing and Regeneration is writing today to the chairmen of the local authority associations inviting their comments on the report's recommendations, which we shall take into account in the preparation of the action plan. He is also inviting the associations to join a joint group with representatives of the main Whitehall departments involved to oversee implementation of the action plan.
The key recommendations of the report cover:
- Reducing the volume of data collected, by cutting down the level of detail or the frequency with which information is collected, eliminating duplication and making greater use of sample surveys.
- Improving the value and usefulness of data, by standardising definitions, reviewing forms with those who have to complete them, and taking steps to improve understanding of: what is required, how the data will be used, and how the information provided relates to the quality and level of activity on the ground.
- Further work or separate reviews in a number of areas, including specific grant regimes, fire and probation services, school building projects and grants for higher education.
- Improving the arrangements for housing and transport capital programmes, and for European Regional Development Fund and European Social Fund grants, including greater delegation of responsibility in some areas to the Government Offices for the Regions.
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