§ 73. Mr. Dribergasked the Secretary of State for War if he will make a statement on the recent incident in which three troopers of the Royal Horse Guards were handcuffed to their beds in barracks at Windsor for 7½ hours while awaiting court martial; how soon the building containing the guardroom at this barracks is to be replaced or modernised; and what other arrangements are to be made, meanwhile, for the secure custody of men awaiting trial.
§ Mr. ProfumoThese soldiers were in close arrest awaiting court martial on charges of absence and desertion. In the early hours of Sunday, 27th May, they forced the window bars of their cell and broke out. It was not possible to make good the security of the guard-room that day, and there was no other suitable place for their confinement. After their recapture, the prisoners were continuously supervised for the rest of that day; and for the night they each had one wrist handcuffed to the headrail of the bed. The following day, the window was repaired and these temporary measures ceased. As part of the rebuilding of the barracks, a new guard-room is being built and should be completed by the end of this year.