§ Mr. ThurnhamTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the joint Department of Health and Home Office review of services for mentally disordered offenders.
§ Mr. YeoThe review continues to make good progress and is on schedule to complete its work in July.
In his reply on 13 November 1991 at columns 583–84 to my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridgeshire, South East (Mr. Paice), the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, announced that we were publishing four initial reports for consultation. We have received some 200 responses. They have overwhelmingly supported the direction of development proposed in the reports. They also contained many detailed comments, for which we are most grateful.
We are today publishing for consultation five further reports submitted by the steering committee chaired by Dr. John Reed. Copies are available in the Library. These cover finance, staffing and training, research, academic development and services for mentally disordered offenders with special needs. The reports are being issued, as before, to a wide range of interested bodies inviting their comments.
Further work in the review is being directed particularly to issues of race and culture, the needs of learning disabled and homeless people, and the role of, and support for, families. These will be reflected in the steering committee's final report.
The Government will be considering the recommendations arising from this review as a whole in the light of the final report and the responses to consultation on the present and earlier proposals. We have already announced 454W increased capital funding for medium secure psychiatric provision of £18 million in the current year, against £3 million in 1991–92.
My right hon. and learned and hon. Friends and I remain committed to close co-operation between our Departments in this field. We are again most grateful to Dr. Reed and his colleagues for the work they have done.