§ Mr. BerminghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any plans to abolish the use of custody for 14 to 17-year-olds in England and Wales.
§ Mr. John PattenNo.
§ Mr. BerminghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any plans to extend to adult offenders the criteria which must be satisfied before a court may pass a custodial sentence on a person under 21 years of age in England and Wales.
§ Mr. John PattenNo; but the Green Paper, "Punishment, Custody and the Community" (Cm. 424) published in July, invites comments on the future use of custody and the desirability of defining in legislation the circumstances in which the proposed supervision and restriction order might be used.