HC Deb 25 January 1994 vol 236 cc163-4W
Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the residents of St. Vincent's bail hostel for the last 12 months to the latest available date were(a) aged under 17, (b) aged 17 to 20 inclusive and (c) aged 21 years or over.

94. Mr. Maclean

(a) none, (b) 25, (c)

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was(a) the average cost per week of a place in St. Vincent's bail hostel, (b) the average length of stay in St. Vincent's bail hostel and (c) the average cost per week of a prison remand place in the inner London area, at the latest date for which figures are available.

Mr. Maclean

(a) £222. (b) This information is not available. (c) For 1992–93, the average weekly net operating cost per prisoner at prisons in inner London was £566. Remand prisoners represent just over 40 per cent. of these prisoners but costs for remand prisoners are not kept separately.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the occupancy rate of St. Vincent's bail hostel for each of the last 10 quarters.

Mr. Maclean

The occupancy figures for the period April 1991 to March 1992 are not available in a quarterly form. The figures from April 1992 to September 1993 are as follows:

Per cent.
April 1992 to June 1992 64
July 1992 to September 1992 56
October 1992 to December 1992 31
January 1993 to March 1993 27
April 1993 to June 1993 34
July 1993 to September 1993 43

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who has been and who will be consulted about the proposed closure of St. Vincent's bail hostel in inner London.

Mr. Maclean

The chief probation officer for inner London and the chair of the hostel's managing committee were notified on 1 December of the proposed closure and given the opportunity to comment.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what he expects to be the annual saving as a result of the proposed closure of St. Vincent's bail hostel in inner London.

Mr. Maclean

I expect the saving to the Home Office in 1994–95 to be approximately £100,000 and in 1995–96 approximately £200,000.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what capital expenditure was planned for St. Vincent's bail hostel prior to his Department's statement of 30 November.

Mr. Maclean

A proposal for capital expenditure on the conversion of dormitory to single bedroom accommoda-tion had been submitted and was under consideration prior to the 30 November statement; but no plans for improvements to the hostel had been approved.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons were(a) rearrested and charged or (b) breached for failure to comply with requirements at St. Vincent's bail hostel in each of the last 10 quarters.

Mr. Maclean

The information supplied by the hostel is in the table.

Rearrested and charged Breached
August to October 1991 2 2
November to January 1992 2 0
February to April 1992 2 3
May to July 1992 0 3
August to October 1992 0 2
November to January 1993 0 0
February to April 1993 0 6
May to July 1993 2 4
August to October 1993 2 3
November to 24 January 1994 5 4
Totals 15 27

Note: In addition, during this period 41 residents are recorded as having absconded.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people he expects to be remanded into custody per annum as a result of the proposed closure of St. Vincent's bail hostel in inner London.

Mr. Maclean

It is for the courts to decide who should be remanded in custody. There are other approved hostel facilities available to them throughout London.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were remanded in St. Vincent's bail hostel during the last 12 months to the latest available date; and how many of these people were(a) black males and (b) black females.

Mr. Maclean

Between February 1993 and 24 January 1994, 150 bailees were admitted to the hostel. The information requested at(a) and (b) is not held centrally and is not readily available.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff are expected to be made redundant by the proposed closure of the St. Vincent's bail hostel; and at what financial cost.

Mr. Maclean

It will be for the managing committee to decide how to handle the consequences of closure in terms of redeployment or redundancies; we have not yet received a full account of its conclusions.