§ Mr. McNamaraasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many strip searches were made of female prisoners in Her Majesty's prison, Maghabary, in January 1987; if he will give the number of persons involved and the number of times each person was searched; whether any prison contraband, smuggled item or illegal correspondence was discovered in any search, indicating which items; in how many cases prisoners refused to be searched and had to be restrained while the search was being concluded; and if he will indicate the reasons for the search, namely making an appearance in court, and in which court, on remand, attending trial, inter-prison visit or other reasons.
§ Mr. ScottDuring January 1987, 47 searches were carried out on 27 prisoners; nine prisoners were searched once, 16 were searched twice and two prisoners were searched on three occasions. No prohibited article was found during these searches and no prisoner refused to be searched. The searches were carried out in the following circumstances:
Number First admission on remand/awaiting trial 5 First admission on sentence/final discharge 22 Attending Lisburn Remand Court 1 Attending Belfast Remand Court 4 Attending Antrim Remand Court 1 Bail Court appearances 5 Going on or returning from home leave 6 Inter prison visits 2 Visits to outside hospital 1