§ Mr. Oakesasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now instruct the Property Services Agency not to proceed with the feasibility study for the establishment of a prison in Halton.
§ Mr. Oakesasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now announce that he will no longer proceed with his proposal to establish a prison in Halton in view of the opposition of the local authority and members of the public.
§ Mr. HurdIn view of the extent of local opposition to the proposal, we have decided that it would not be right to proceed further with the possible development of the site in Halton for prison purposes. However, the need remains for a new local prison in the north west to relieve serious overcrowding in our existing establishments, and we shall therefore continue our search for sites in this area.
§ Mr. Oakesasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received to date about the establishment of a prison in Halton; and how many are in favour and how many against this proposal.
§ Mr. HurdMy right hon. and learned Friend has received about 50 letters from local residents, including 475W one from the right hon. Member, about the proposed prison development. Two of these were in favour of the proposal and the remainder opposed.