§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he intends to take arising from the findings of the recently published report by the National Audit Office on debts and losses incurred in the management of prison workshops.
§ Mr. MellorThe remedial measures being taken are described in some detail in the Comptroller and Auditor General's report.* They were announced in broad outline to the House by the then Home Secretary on 31 October 1984, at column 987, and include new machinery for central management of prison industries, a rolling four-year plan to determine future strategy and overall financial targets, and improvements in a range of managerial and financial controls. He also announced on 12 July 1985, at column 560, a review by the Prisons Board of how far prison industries were making a satisfactory contribution to providing worthwhile employment for prison inmates. We shall announce the outcome of this review in due course.
- * Appropriation Accounts (volume 6: Class IX, 1984–1985
- Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General Class IX Vote 8:
- Prisons, England and Wales (Home Office).