§ Mr. CoxTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the amount of personal possessions a prison inmate is officially allowed to have in a prison.
§ 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. Tom Cox, dated 1 November 1994:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about prisoners' personal possessions.Prison standing orders specify a number of personal items which prisoners may have in possession, and set out the basis on which decisions are to be made about other items. The fundamental principle determining the amount of property allowed in possession, as well as the acceptability of individual items, is that effective searching should not be prevented, nor should any items constitute a security, safety or health risk.