§ 40. Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what response he has sent to the Prison Officers' Association's request that prisoners suffering from mental illness should be removed to psychiatric hospitals.
§ Mr. WhitelawThe Department has received no recent specific request from the Prison Officers' Association that prisoners suffering from mental illness should be removed to psychiatric hospitals. Prisoners suffering from mental disorder of a nature or degree warranting their detention in hospital for medical treatment may be transferred to hospital when the conditions prescribed in the Mental Health Act 1959 for such transfer are satisfied and when a suitable hospital place is available, but the difficulty in obtaining such places continues to limit the number of transfers that can be arranged.