HC Deb 31 July 1998 vol 317 cc857-8W
Mr. Flynn

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has to ensure that the qualifications of medical staff in prisons are parallel to those of the National Health Service. [54217]

Mr. George Howarth

The Directorate of Health Care is working with an expert committee, comprising representatives of the Royal Colleges of General Practitioners, Medicine and Psychiatry, to establish a Health Care Standard for the continuing professional development of doctors working in prisons in England and Wales. This new Standard will include essential person specifications and competencies for the employment of prison doctors.