§ Mr. Juddasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners escaped from custody in each of the past six years; what proportion 310W of these each year escaped between 1st October and 31st December; and what studies have been made of possible statistical relationships between sensational reporting and any increase in the rate of escapes.
§ Mr. Roy JenkinsFigures of escapes from closed and open prisons from 1961 to 1966 are given in the following table together with the proportions of these escapes in the last quarter of each of the last five years. Comparable figures for 1961 are not available.
Year Escapes from closed and open prisons Proportion between 1st October and 31st December per cent. 1961 241 — 1962 184 33 1963 271 29 1964 406 31 1965 404 30 1966 378 34 (The figures for 1966 are subject to confirmation.) No detailed study has been made of the possible statistical relationships between sensational reporting and the numbers of prisoners escaping, though this may be a contributory factor. The table shows that there has been no significant increase in the rate of escapes over the past three years, particularly bearing in mind the increase in prison population by some 3,000 during this period.