§ Lord Aveburyasked Her Majesty's Government:
What steps are being taken to reduce the long delays and late arrivals of prisoners from court and to improve the limited information received by prisons from escort contractors; and what assessment has been made of the benefits that could be secured from placing responsibility for escort services with the Prison Service. [HL756]
§ Lord Falconer of ThorotonThe Prison Service is taking a number of steps to improve the service to the courts. These include the greater use of video links to reduce prisoner movements to court and the provision of additional resources to contractors to enable them to respond to the increased volume of business..
All necessary information is passed between the contractor and the Prison Service whenever a prisoner is moved. Any failure to pass on any necessary information would be investigated by the Prison Service as part of their monitoring processes.
The contracting out of prisoner escort arrangements has offered better value for money and a reduction in the number of escapes and has freed up prison officers to concentrate on their core duties. A recent Prison Service review confirmed that the service should continue to be contracted out. It also concluded that 7WA existing contracts, which are planned to be re-let in 2004, should be replaced with more flexible ones to allow the Prison Service to respond more quickly to future business needs. The Prison Service is developing this approach and is considering how the relevant agencies in the criminal justice system can work together to improve the service.