THE EARL OF KIMBERLEY, in rising to ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Secretary of State has no power, under Section 38 of the Prisons Act of 1877, to mitigate the treatment in prison of persons imprisoned for non-payment of fines imposed under the Vaccination 1112 Acts, said: My Lords, I understand that the noble Lord who takes charge of Home Office matters in this House can answer me this question. It arises out of a question asked by my noble and learned Friend Lord Herschell, who has left town. The section in question—Section. 38 of the Prisons Act of 1877—says that—
The Secretary of State may, from time to time, make, and when made, repeal, alter, or add to Rules with respect to the classification and treatment of prisoners imprisoned for noncompliance with the order of a justice or justices to pay a sum of money, or imprisoned in respect of the default of a distress to satisfy a sum of money adjudged to be paid by order of a justice or justices, so that such Rules are in mitigation and not in increase of the effect of such imprisonment, as regulated by the Prisons Act, 1865.I apprehend that the case of these persons imprisoned for not paying their fines under the Vaccination Acts would come under this clause, and my desire is to know whether the Secretary of State has power to mitigate the effects of the sentences?
§ *LORD DE RAMSEYMy Lords, I must largely repeat what I said in answer to the question put to me by the noble and learned Lord (Lord Herschell) last Friday. This section does not apply to convicted criminal prisoners. The law on the subject is explained in the case which I mentioned last Friday of "Kennard v. Simmons and others" (15 Criminal Law Cases, p. 397), in which Lord Justice Lindley, in 1884, seven years after the passing of the Prisons Act of 1877, explained the distinction between money adjudged to be paid on a conviction and money simply ordered to be paid. The power of the Secretary of State to make such Rules as the Justices might have made under Section 21 of the Prisons Act, 1865, is confined to framing dietary tables; and his power under Section 102 (Schedule I.) of the Prisons Act, 1805, is confined to prisoners who are not debtors and not criminal prisoners. A person imprisoned for non-payment of fines imposed under the Vaccination Acts is a "criminal prisoner." I would point out to the noble Earl that twice in that Section (38) of the Prisons Act, 1877, to which he refers, the expression occurs "imprisoned for non-compliance with an order of a justice or justices," and 1113 then, further on, it says "adjudged to be paid by order of a justice," marking distinctly, therefore, the difference between the convicted criminal offender and the man whose case could be dealt with in a different way, as I have already mentioned.