§ Ms RuddockTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the levels of overcrowding on which tenders for the new prison at Doncaster have been invited.
§ Mr. Peter LloydResponsibility 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 D. Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated November 1993:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about levels of overcrowding at Her Majesty's Prison Doncaster. The Invitation to Tender stated that, in accordance with the current procedures for opening new prisons, it was not envisaged that Her Majesty's Prison would be overcrowed.In recognition of the population pressure, however, and of the importance of having the value of competitive pressure in setting performance outputs and prices, all tenderers have subsequently been asked for their proposals for operating the prison at above the Certified Normal Accommodation (CNA) figure, including the impact on regime offerded on prisoner care.