§ Ms WalleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give figures for April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December of the number of people imprisoned for non-payment of outstanding community charge and in each case specify the length and cost per person of imprisonment; and what proportion of those imprisoned are in receipt of benefit.
§ Mr. Peter LloydResponsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Walley, dated 13 January 1994:
NON PAYMENT OF OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY CHARGE
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the number of people imprisoned in April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December for non-payment of outstanding community charge, and for each case the length and cost per person of imprisonment and what proportion of those imprisoned are in receipt of benefit.
Provisional data is given in the attached table for the months April to October 1993. Because of the number of cases identified it is not possible to detail the length of sentence imposed in each case. Information relating to the cost per person of imprisonment specifically for these cases is not available. The average net operating cost for prisoners in local prisons and remand centres in 1992/3, however, was £526 per week. The average sentence applied was 34 days of which just under half would normally be served. Information on the proportion of those imprisoned who are in receipt of benefit is not available centrally.
483W
Receptions into Prison Service establishments in England and Wales for non-payment of community charge1: April-October 1993 Month Number April 25 May 28 June 21 July 36 August 35 September 27 October 35 Total 207 1 Includes small numbers recorded as non-payment of rates.