§ Mr. SteinbergTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give his latest estimate for the annual wage and food costs in the catering service at(a) Her Majesty's prison, Durham and (b) Her Majesty's prison, Belmarsh and state whether the catering service expenditure at either prison is likely to exceed the projected annual budget for the current financial year.
§ Mrs. Rumbold[holding answer 10 March 1992]: The estimated expenditure on wage and food costs in the catering service at Her Majesty's prison Durham for the financial year 1991–92 is:
£ Prison service staff 161,000 Inmates 12,000 Victualling 363,000 TOTAL 536,000 The catering service for Her Majesty's prison Belmarsh is supplied by contract, the details of which are confidential for commercial reasons. The estimated victualling costs in addition to the contract costs are £279,000 for the financial year 1991–92.
The total cost of the catering service is not separately identified in each establishment's budget. Moreover, victualling costs are on a per capita basis and thus vary depending on the size of the inmate population.