§ Mr. Berminghamasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what treatments, psychological and physiological, are currently being administered to (a) people serving prison sentences for sex offences and (b) people convicted of sex offences who are currently on probation conditional upon receiving some form of medical or psychiatric treatment; and if any of these treatments is administered specifically to secure an early release from prison or as an alternative to a prison sentence;
(2) if Her Majesty's Government issued any guidelines on accepting requests from, or on behalf of, people convicted of sex offences for medical treatment to be administered instead of a prison sentence;
(3) what procedure exists to ensure that proper consent is obtained from prisoners, or people convicted of sex offences awaiting sentence, to medical treatment aimed as an alternative to prison custody;
350W(4) how many people convicted of sex offences are currently on probation conditional upon their receiving some form of medical or psychological therapy.
§ Mr. MellorI will reply as soon as possible.
§ Mr. Berminghamasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if any members of the Home Office research unit have been involved, within the last three years, in the development of therapies such as behavioural therapy aimed at treating sex offenders.
§ Mr. MellorNo.