§ Mr. Michaelto ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many(a) remanded and (b) sentenced prisoners aged under 21 years have been received into Armley prison since 1 August 1994; what was the number of such prisoners detained in Armley prison at the most recent convenient date; and why 566W prisoners of this age are being held at Armley rather that at Moorland young offender institution.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythResponsibility 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 Mr. Alun Michael, dated 13 December 1994:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about young offenders at Leeds prison.There are currently no prisoners aged under 21 years detained at Leeds. Such prisoners have been held at Leeds on two occasions since August 1994.In one case, a sentenced prisoner aged 20 who had been reclassified as adult was held at Leeds, in view of his record of behaviour in custody. He had taken hostages and committed affray and was unsuited to young offender conditions. He was released from custody in September 1994. The other case involved a remand prisoner who claimed he was 21. He was only held at Leeds for two days until a check with the Registrar of Births proved that he was under 21 and he was transferred to Doncaster.