§ Mr. Buckasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has received the report of the recent inquiry into allegations of brutality at Ashford Remand Centre; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MaudlingThree young men who had been in custody at Ashford Remand Centre during the period February to May, 1971, subsequently complained to theSunday Times about the treatment they had received at the centre. These complains, which included allegations of brutality by the staff, were communicated to the Home Office and later appeared in an article in the Sunday Times on 13th June, 1971.
I asked the chairman of the visiting committee at Ashford if the committee would arrange for the complaints to be investigated. A full investigation has now been carried out by a board consisting of the chairman and another member of the visiting committee, together with the chairman of the visiting committee at another London prison. The board investigated the complains in detail and received oral and written evidence. I have now considered its report. Some of the allegations were that there had been misconduct on the part of individual officers at Ashford; others were that there had be maladministration on the part of the remand centre authorities. The board's unanimous conclusion is that in no case were they able to find any firm substance in the allegations. I much regret the anxiety and distress which these unjustified allegations have caused to members of the prison service at the remand centre.
I should like to express my appreciation to the board for the care with which it carried out this inquiry and the time which it devoted to it.