Prison Visits (Hansard, 9 December 1993)

§ Ms Ruddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many queries from the police and probation service were processed by the prisoner location unit in Birmingham during the last four weeks for which figures are available; and what was the average time taken to process each application;
(2) how many complaints were received from members of the public about the processing of prison visit applications in the year prior to the establishment of the assisted prison visits unit;
(3) what additional resources will be made available in the next financial year to investigate possible fraudulent claims at the assisted prison visits unit;
(4) how many staff were employed at the assisted prison visits unit in Birmingham;
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(5) when sufficient resources will be made available to the assisted prison visits unit to pay applicants twice per month;
(6) when the assisted prison visits unit records will be computerised;
(7) how many applications were dealt with last year by the assisted prison visits unit; and what is the average time taken to process each application;
(8) how many complaints were received from the public about the processing of the assisted prison visits unit applications last year;
(9) what checks are currently made to detect fraudulent claims at the assisted prison visits unit.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
Responsibility for these matters has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated December 1993: The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Questions about the operation of the Assisted Prison Visits Unit, including the Prisoner Location Unit. The Assisted Prison Visits Unit (APVU) currently operates with 37 members of staff, five of whom are dedicated to work arising on the Prisoner Location Unit. The APVU processed 79,370 applications last year with an average turn round time of seven working days. The Prisoner Location Unit received 4,263 calls from the police and the probation service during November 1993. On average the Unit took 24 hours to process each claim, although the vast majority were dealt with on the same day. Current administrative procedures provide that there should be systematic checks with prison establishments to confirm that visits have been made, and with the Benefits Agency to ensure that applicants qualify on low income. Where evidence of any fraudulent claim comes to light these are referred to the police for investigation. The advent of computerisation within the APVU, the first phase of which is scheduled to come on line in March 1994, will enhance the detection of fraudulent claims and their investigation. You also ask about the proposed extension of the Assisted Visits scheme to cover the second statutory monthly payment. The White Paper "Custody, Care and Justice" includes a commitment to consider extensions of the scheme as resources allow. We have also indicated in the Prison Service Business plan that the extension should take place this financial year. No final decision on this matter has been taken. It will be necessary to do so in the light of the resources available to the Prison Service and it is not possible to say when payment of the second monthly visit will be initiated. Lastly, you also ask about the number of complaints which were received from members of the public in the year prior to this function being transferred from the then DHSS to the Prison Service and similarly, the number of complaints from the public about processing of applications which the APVU received last year. I am afraid that we do not have any records relating to the performance of the DHSS. Statistics on the number of complaints received by the APVU are not held in the form requested and could be obtained only by inspecting individual case files.

§ Ms Ruddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 will apply to the market testing of the assisted prison visits unit.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
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Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated December 1993: The Home Secretory has asked me to reply to your recent Question about whether the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 will apply to the market testing of the Assisted Prisons Visits Unit. We have identified the Unit as one of our candidates for market testing. Work on a scoping study, which is the first stage in the process, will start in the new year. This will examine in detail the suitability or otherwise of the Assisted Prisons Visits Unit for competitive tendering against the private sector. If competitive tendering follows we will expect bidders to consider the implications of the Regulations. As in all market tests, whether the Regulations apply will depend on the circumstances of the particular case and the way that bidders respond to the invitation to tender. To assist in this the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster issued advice on the application of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 on 11 March 1993 (HWA col. 648).

§ Ms Ruddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria were used to select the assisted prison visits unit and the prisoner location unit for market testing.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated December 1993: The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the criteria used to select the Assisted Prisons Visits Unit and the Prisoner Location Unit for market testing. The White Paper 'Competing for Quality' identified promising areas for market testing. These included such functions as payment of grants, grant administration and advisory services. APVU, which at present subsumes the Prisoner Location Unit, carries out these functions. A scoping study due to start in the new year will examine the suitability or otherwise of the Unit for competitive tendering.

§ Ms Ruddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the scoping report into the proposed market test of the assisted prison visits unit will be made available to staff.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated December 1993: The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about whether the Scoping Report into the proposed market test of the Assisted Prisons Visits Unit will be made available to staff. Staff in the Unit will be consulted fully throughout the scoping study and a copy of the scoping study report will be made available to them.

§ Ms Ruddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the decision was made to market test the assisted prison visits unit; and when the staff association was informed.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
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Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated December 1993: The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about when the decision was made to market test the Assisted Prisons Visits Unit; and when the Staff Association was informed. The Prisons Board Executive Committee decided on 26 July 1993 to include the Assisted Prisons Visits Unit as one of our candidates for market testing. Staff in the Unit were told by their Head of Division on 6 August 1993. Prison Service Trades Unions and Staff Associations were advised at the same time. This has been followed up with briefing by senior line management and our Market Testing Section. Work on the first stage of the process will start in the new year. This will examine in detail the suitability, or otherwise, of APVU for competitive tendering against the private sector.