HC Deb 07 December 1973 vol 865 cc493-4W
Mr. Meacher

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to improve the state of visiting facilities in prisons and other places of detention, particularly the provision of adequate lavatory facilities and reasonable refreshments.

Mr. Carlisle

Significant improvements were made following a survey of visiting facilities in 1971, and steps were taken to make further improvements after a review earlier this year. We are continuing with improvements at individual establishments.

Mr. Meacher

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will issue instructions to governors and staff of prisons to ensure that steps are taken to see that visiting relatives are informed in advance of the transfer of a prisoner from one establishment to another.

Mr. Carlisle

Governors have standing instructions that a prisoner should be given facilities to tell his relatives that he is being moved before he is transferred, or, if this has not been possible, immediately afterwards. Where the relatives have not been told in advance and a visiting order is outstanding, the instructions require governors to make every effort to warn the prospective visitors in time.

Mr. Meacher

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to require that the same visiting facilities and financial assistance should be made available to both persons remanded in custody and prisoners serving a sentence of three months or less as to convicted prisoners serving longer sentences.

Mr. Carlisle

Financial assistance for visits is already available to relatives of persons remanded in custody on the same scale as to those of prisoners serving sentences of more than three months. The provision of similar assistance to relatives of prisoners serving shorter sentences is being considered in the current review.

Mr. Meacher

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if, following his current review, he will take steps to ensure that any person given permission to visit a serving prisoner should be granted a free railway travel warrant, and ensure that the same financial assistance should be available for every visit and not only once a month.

Mr. Carlisle

The provision of financial assistance for all visits to serving prisoners by relatives who are in receipt of supplementary benefit or whose income is at a similar level is being considered in the current review.