HC Deb 28 March 1968 vol 761 cc1708-9
25. Mr. St. John-Stevas

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made on implementing the Mountbatten Report on Prisons.

Mr. Callaghan

A good deal of progress has been made. All prisoners are now given a security classification; the security of prisons in which Category A and B prisoners are held has been strengthened; liaison with the police has been improved; the number of prison staff recruited has risen substantially and officers are now being selected for the new grade of senior prison officer. The rate of the escapes from closed prisons is now lower.

Mr. St. John-Stevas

Has the right hon. Gentleman abandoned the project for a maximum security prison in the Isle of Wight, as has been reported to have been recommended by the Radzinowicz Committee? To borrow a phrase from my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for St. Marylebone (Mr. Hogg), is it the intention no longer to put all the bad eggs in one basket, but to distribute them around several areas?

Mr. Speaker

Order. Questions would be briefer without borrowed phrases.

Mr. Callaghan

The plans for the maximum security prison have been deferred but I propose to look at them again in the light of the Report from the Advisory Committee on the Penal System which will be published next week. I will then reach a conclusion and inform the House.

Mr. McNamara

Can my right hon. Friend assure us that all those prisons which have received special security equipment, like closed circuit television, are using it?

Mr. Callaghan

To the best of my knowledge. I have seen closed circuit television in use in at least one prison, where, I think, it is extremely effective.

Mr. Hogg

Would the right hon. Gentleman recognise that, despite the conflicting advice which I understand he has now received about the treatment of maximum security prisoners this is one of the cruxes of the matter? Will he assure us that he will not allow the difficulty of reaching a decision to delay it beyond the earliest possible moment?

Mr. Callaghan

There will be no need to delay a decision on this matter, which can be reached fairly quickly, but, in deference to those whom I asked to advise me, I think that I should give proper consideration to it and allow some time for public opinion to express itself, following the publication of the Report. I should like to be guided by the views of hon. Members and others who are interested in this matter.