§ Mr. Stephen Rossasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the response to recent advertisements seeking recruits to the prison service; how many new entrants have been accepted into the service over the past three months; and how this compares with the position 12 months ago.
§ Mr. BrittanThe response has been encouraging; the number of applications for employment as a prison officer is currently 30 per cent. up on last year. In the three months to 30 November 1979, 299 new entrants joined for training, against 246 in the same period last year.