§ 30. Mr. St. John-Stevasasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will make revised arrangements for the religious welfare of prisoners in security wings.
§ Mr. CarlisleI am not aware of any need to change the present arrangements but should be glad to consider any suggestions which my hon. Friend may have in mind.
§ Mr. St. John-StevasDoes not my hon. Friend realise for Catholics it is the mass that matters and that communion given to prisoners in their cells is not the same as allowing them to take part in a public act of worship?
§ Mr. CarlisleI appreciate what my hon. Friend says, but the difficulty, as he knows, is that those who are within the security wings are kept segregated from the rest of the prison population. I can tell my hon. Friend that chaplains and ministers regularly visit these wings and positively offer services to those in them.