§ Mr. BeggsTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the annual cost of enabling relatives of Northern Ireland prisoners in Great Britain to travel and visit relations in Great Britain. [35593]
§ Sir John WheelerResponsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Northern Ireland Prison Service under its chief executive, Mr. Alan Shannon. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from M. A. Mogg to Mr. Roy Beggs, dated 18 July 1995:
In the absence of the Chief Executive, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has asked me to reply to the Parliamentary Question you tabled relating to the annual cost of enabling relatives of Northern Ireland prisoners in Great Britain to travel and visit relations in prisons in Great Britain.The total expenditure on the Assisted Visits Scheme for the 1994/95 financial year was £127,702.22. This included an amount of £17,906.41 administration costs which was payable to the Department of Health and Social Services. I am afraid that it is not possible to extract from this figure the specific costs to which you refer.I hope this information is helpful.
Breakdown by 4 Boards, Central Services Agency and National Board September 1994 Number WTE Administration and clerical staff in Northern Ireland National Board 100 95.53 Central services agency 527 496.22 Eastern 4,303 3,846.38 Northern 1,767 1,557.66 Southern 1,220 1,087.65 Western 1,182 1,086.57 Northern Ireland total 9,099 8,170.01 Nursing and midwifery staff in Northern Ireland National Board 249 241.86 Eastern 9,626 7,662.31 Northern 2,954 2,509.25 Southern 3,150 2,511.20 Western 2,930 2,473.00 Northern Ireland total 18,909 15,397.62 WTE = Whole Time Equivalent. Number = Headcount.