HC Deb 07 July 1989 vol 156 cc307-8W
Mr. French

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has received any representations on the length of time it takes to process the applications of prison officers to buy the homes provided with their service.

Mr. Douglas Hogg

In the two years since prison officers have been able to buy their homes under the prison service discount scheme, more than 4,000 applications have been received and nearly 3,000 properties have been sold. Although extra staff were provided to deal with these applications, the sheer volume caused some delays, particularly in the conveyancing of the properties, and a number of representations have been received about these.