HC Deb 18 May 1976 vol 911 cc436-8W
Mr. Lawrence

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners in England and Wales in each of the past 10 years have spent more than one week: (a) three in a cell and (b) two in a cell.

Mr. John

Central records show that the highest total numbers of inmates sleeping two or three to a cell in each of tilt last 10 years were as follows:

Three to a cell Two to a cell
1975 5,298 10,342
1974 4,122 10,024
1973 4,221 8,388
1972 6,609 7,128
1971 8,238 6,212
1970 9,288 4,886
1969 7,653 2,886
1968 6,084 1,506
1967 7,419 1,584
1966 7,206 1,494

I regret that information is not collected about the periods for which individual prisoners have to share cells.

Mr. Lawrence

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the average weekly cost of maintaining the following categories of prisoner in penal institutions in England and Wales in each of the past 10 years: (a) men

Year Prisons Borstals Detention Centres Remand Centres
£ £ £ £
1965–66 16 17 18 17
1966–67 15 17 18 17
1967–68 17 19 20 20
1968–69 22 21 25 25
1969–70 23 23 27 24
1970–71 24 29 29 Included with prisons
1971–72 30 37 35

Males Females
Prisons and remand centers Borstals and YP centers Detention centers All establishments
1972–73 34 41 38 47
1973–74 41 51 45 53
1974–75 58 69 59 74

Mr. Lawrence

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total prison population in each of the past 10 years in England and Wales, setting out the numbers of males, females, children and young persons.

Mr. John

From figures immediately available, it is not possible to answer this Question precisely in the form requested. The table below gives the readily available information:

AVERAGE DAILY POPULATION IN PRISON ESTABLISHMENTS1965–1974
Year Total Males Females
1965 30,421 29,580 841
1966 33,086 32,127 959
1967 35,009 34,056 953
1968 32,461 31,656 805
1969 34,667 33,814 853
1970 39,028 38,040 988
1971 39,708 38,673 1,035
1972 38,328 37,348 980
1973 36,774 35,747 1,027
1974 36,867 35,823 1,044

It is not possible readily to subdivide the totals given in the table above in such a way as to distinguish between young persons aged 14–16 years and those aged 17–20 years. However, the daily average populations of all young persons aged 14–20 years who were held in Prison Department establishments for the years in question were:

serving sentences, (b) women serving sentences, (c) children and young persons serving sentences, (d) men on remand, (e) women on remand and (f) children and young persons on remand.

Mr. John

Information is not available in the form requested, but the following table gives the average weekly cost of maintaining a prisoner in the types of establishment specified:

Year Total males and females
1965 8,574
1966 9,414
1967 9,958
1968 9,576
1969 10,078
1970 11,335
1971 10,908
1972 10,385
1973 9,040
1974 10,633