§ Mr. BARTONasked the Home Secretary at what hour prisoners in local and 31W convict prisons, respectively, in England and Wales are locked in their cells in the evening; whether any change has been made recently with regard to the hours spent in the cells; and, if so, what are the grounds on which this change has been made?
§ Sir H. SAMUELThe hour varies in different prisons between about 4.30 p.m. and 5.30 p.m. In many prisons where associated labour formerly continued till about 5.30 p.m., the time spent out of the cells has recently been reduced by about an hour or three-quarters of an hour. The change was one of the regrettable but unavoidable consequences of the financial crisis. The only way to effect any material saving in prison expenditure is to reduce staff by leaving unfilled vacancies caused in the normal course by retirements. The wages of the staff account for considerably more than half of the total Prison Vote. The change has not affected all prisons, and has not affected the arrangements by which many prisoners are brought out of their cells on certain evenings in the week to attend educational classes.