§ Sir John WheelerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he can report progress on his plans for the independent review of prisoners' complaints.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeI am pleased to announce that I have now agreed arrangements to appoint a prisons ombudsman to consider grievances from prisoners who have failed to obtain satisfaction from the present internal complaints system. He or she will have a wide remit to consider issues affecting individual prisoners. It will extend to grievances relating to contracted out prisons. It will not include complaints about non-prison bodies—the courts, the police and the Parole Board for example.
The prisons ombudsman will be able to consider the merits of cases as well as the procedures involved. He or she will make recommendations to the chief executive of the Prison Service, and to myself as necessary. The ombudsman will publish an annual report which will be laid before the House.
I will look to the prisons ombudsman to maintain good liaison with Her Majesty's chief inspector of prisons and 785W with the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration. The rights of prisoners to approach the latter through a Member of Parliament will of course be unaffected by this new appointment. The post will be publicly advertised shortly. My aim is to announce an appointment in the spring in order to have the new office operating and considering grievances by the end of this year.