§ Ms. RichardsonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will provide the latest figures on numbers of suicides, attempted suicides and self-mutilation inflicted by prisoners at each of the women's prisons.
§ Mrs. RumboldSince 1980, seven women have died at their own hand while in prison service custody. The establishments involved were Holloway, in 1981 and 1985, Risley, in 1986, 1987 and twice in 1989, and Durham in 1990. Accurate information on the incidence of attempted suicide and deliberate self-injury by prisoners is not available. It is planned to introduce new arrangements for reporting all such incidents, in line with a recommendation made by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons in his report on suicide and self-harm in prison.
§ Ms. RichardsonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list for the latest year for which there are figures(a) how many women were sent to prison for violent offences, (b) what percentage this RS of the total female prison population, (c) what percentage this is of the total prison population and (d) what percentage this is of the population of the United Kingdom.
§ Mrs. RumboldExcluding those committed in default of payment of a fine, 380 females were received into prison service establishments in England and Wales in 1989 under sentence for offences of violence against the person, sexual offences and robbery. On 30 June 1989 the population of females serving sentences for these offences was 323 and formed 18 per cent. of the female prison population and 0.7 per cent. of the male and female prison population. They also represented six per million of the estimated resident male and female population of England and Wales.