§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria underlay the awarding of the contract for the Wolds prison to a firm which did not submit the lowest bid.
§ 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 A. J. Butler to Mrs. Barbara Roche, dated 20 February 1995:
The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question about the awarding of the contract for Wolds prison.Of the bids submitted to the Prison Service, two were lower than Group 4's bid. Although all three bids were considered to be acceptable, the key factors were the assessment of the bidder's ability to deliver the service that was proposed at the price that was being offered. There was concern about the lean staffing levels in the lowest bid and that they would not be sufficient to deal with any incidents that might arise. The lowest bidder also lacked the United Kingdom experience of Group 4, which included the operation of the Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre. These risks were considered to outweigh the higher price bid by Group 4. The overall conclusion was that Group 4's bid offered the best value for money, together with an assurance of quality.