§ 81. Mr. Biggs-Davisonasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what review of the procedure for the transfer of prisoners to hospital and for their custody there has been held since the beginning of the emergency in Cyprus.
§ Mr. ProfumoThe procedure is regularly reviewed, and the Nicosia Prison Hospital is now being extended to reduce the necessity for transfer outside the prison.
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§ 82. Mr. Biggs-Davisonasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will make a statement about the escape of three Greek Cypriot prisoners from Nicosia General Hospital on the night of 7th-8th July last.
§ Mr. ProfumoAt 11 p.m. on 7th July two detainees and one prisoner serving a sentence of seven years for possessing explosives who were undergoing treatment at the Nicosia General Hospital escaped from the detainees ward by removing the nails from the iron bar frame over the window, cutting a hole in the wire fence and crawling through. From there they climbed over a barbed wire fence and escaped through the Hospital grounds. The escape was first noticed by a nurse who entered the ward and gave the alarm.
Police and tracker dogs were called in and road blocks set up at once but so far no trace has been found of the prisoners. Four other detainees in the same ward did not attempt to escape.
Apart from a permanent military guard outside the ward there is a United Kingdom warder permanently on duty.