§ 3. Mr. Meacherasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has about the intelligence quotient breakdown of prison officers, and of persons sent to prison or borstal, respectively.
§ Mr. CarlisleThere is no systematic collection of this information.
§ Mr. MeacherIs the hon. and learned Gentleman aware that a recent Ministry of Home Affairs study in Northern Ireland found that a third of young prisoners were above average or average in educa- 1166 tional attainment, and that a quarter of that third were bright or very bright? Does not that indicate the need for much greater ingenuity and enterprise in devising employment and general activities for prisoners, especially for young prisoners?
§ Mr. CarlisleI was not aware of the report to which the hon. Gentleman refers. Intelligence tests are carried out as part of the allocation process of those who are being sent to borstals. The only evidence that we have available, from the only studies that we have made, is that the prison population generally appears to mirror the intelligence of the public generally.