§ MR. PICKERSGILL) (Bethnal Green, S.W.I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has conveyed, or is about to convey, the property in Newgate Gaol to the Court of the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of the City of London, upon condition that they shall erect on a portion of the site a new Criminal Court; if so, whether he has had before him independent estimates, first, of the value of the building site to be handed over; and, secondly, of the probable cost of erecting the new Court; and, what was the number of prisoners for whom accommodation was provided in Newgate Gaol at the time of the passing of the Prisons Act, 1877?
§ MR. MATTHEWSThe City Authorities have asked for the Newgate Prison site for the erection of a new Criminal Court, and their proposal is now under consideration, but no final agreement has been arrived at. Before deciding the question, I shall certainly take into consideration the value of the site and the cost of the new Court, so far as they affect the interests of the Government. The cell accommodation at Newgate before the Prisons Act was 204. If the prison were discontinued, the City would be entitled to a re-conveyance of it under the terms of Section 33 of the Prisons Act, 1877.