§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the reasons for the variation of provisions cost per prisoner varying from £9.03 to £12.11 per week.
§ Mr. Charles WardleResponsibility 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. Martin Redmond, dated 8 March 1994:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the variation in the costs of inmates' food.Costs per head will vary for a number of reasons, which will include the mix of religious and cultural backgrounds of inmates in a particular establishment which will influence the number of ethnic and religious diets to be provided.The regime of an establishment will also have some impact upon food costs; for example, the provision of packed meals for inmate working parties, whether bread is produced in-house or purchased and the use of frozen meals where inmates return late to the establishment.Establishments with large health care facilities may have a higher requirement for more expensive medical diets.