§ Mr. Silvesterasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list initiatives by his Department which have been of benefit specifically to the north-east, north-west and Yorkshire and Humberside regions since 1979.
§ Mr. HurdInitiatives by my Department which have benefited these regions since 1979 include the crime prevention and community programme. Since this began in October 1985 some 61 community programme projects have been established, offering 2,904 places in the MSC north-west region, 28 projects offering 756 places in the
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§ Mr. MellorThe term "mentally disturbed" is not a medical term. Once a decision to charge any inmate has been taken, it is for medical officers to assess the inmate and bring to the governor's attention cases where the inmate is unfit for adjudication and punishment. Inmates who are mentally disordered are marked unfit for adjudication. Board of visitors adjudicating panels are provided with full medical reports, and it is always open to them to disagree with the assessment of fitness, and to defer or dismiss the charges. My right hon. Friend has no plans to change the current practice. Information on disciplinary hearings at Holloway prison is not available in the form requested. However, the following details are available for women in Holloway's psychiatric wing (C1 unit) and the main hospital (B4 unit).
MSC Yorkshire and Humberside region and 43 projects offering 1,419 places in the MSC northern region (comprising Northumbria, Tyne and Wear and Co. Durham). Five local crime prevention demonstration projects were also announced in October 1985; one of these is in Bolton and another in North Tyneside. These projects are designed to show how crime and the fear of crime can be reduced by co-ordinated action by local agencies and concentrate on particular local crime projects.
Following the announcement in 1985 that dedicated drugs wings would be created in all regional crime squad areas, drugs wings have been set up in three areas covering the north of England, providing seven wings, all of which are now operational. These wings are intended to increase the effectiveness of police operations against drug offences.
A substantial amount of building has also been undertaken in these regions since 1979. Capital allocations for police buildings, magistrates' courthouses and probation offices have been made to authorities in the areas named to enable them to provide in recent years some 40 major schemes which are now completed, under construction or in planning; a further 36 major schemes in these areas have been accepted for eventual inclusion in the capital allocation programmes. An extension to a protected underground control centre in Preston was completed in 1982 and a building with training facilities for UKWMO in Carlisle was completed in 1983.
Since 1979 my Department has completed three new prison establishments in these areas—Frankland, Thorn Cross youth custody centre and Lindholme—and two further establishments—Full Sutton and Garth—are still under construction. In addition, refurbishment and redevelopment work has been completed or is in progress at 13 existing prison establishments.
In respect of the Fire Service, for which I have a general statutory responsibility, during 1979 to 1985 major 247W building projects were undertaken in these areas which included four brigade HQs, four control centres, seven fire stations and two training centres.
Arrangements have also been made for increased posts in some areas which fall within my Department's responsibilities. Since May 1979 the following increases have been approved in the police establishments of forces in these areas:
Number of additional police posts North East Cleveland 63 Durham 8 Humberside 33 Northumbria 53 North Yorkshire 40 South Yorkshire 129 West Yorkshire 50 North West Cumbria 42 Greater Manchester 208 Lancashire 40 Merseyside 228 Cheshire 40 In order to make special provision for services to persons of Commonwealth origin my Department has substantially increased since 1979 the amount paid to local authorities for posts funded under section 11 of the Local Government Act in these areas. The Home Office has also provided 80 per cent. specific grant towards the cost of increases in the manpower of area probation services in the North of England.
In addition, the Home Office dispersed over 300 posts to Merseyside between 1981 and 1983.