§ Mr. Dubsasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer given to the hon. Member for Battersea, South, on 12 November relating to the prison population, what is the figure based on those assumptions which corresponds to the figure of 4,000 given in his previous answer to a question from the hon. Member for Battersea, South on 28 October.
474W
§ Mr. MayhewA maximum reduction in the prison population for the potential effect of introducing section 47 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 was given, on the assumption of there being no unfavourable factors. The corresponding figure sought by the hon. Member cannot be given because of the wide range of unfavourable assumptions which could in theory be made for the factors indicated in my answer of 12 November—[Vol. 12, c.124.]