HC Deb 21 January 1994 vol 235 cc923-4W
Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much it cost to build the three most recently opened probation and bail hostels; and where they were sited.

Mr. Maclean

The costs of the three most recently opened hostels are:

£
Merseyside bail hostel, Merseyside 934,299
Bunbury House bail hostel, Cheshire 545,537
Scunthorpe bail hostel, Humberside 1579,016
1 Estimated.

Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was, or will be, the projected underspend on the hostel expansion budget for 1992–93 and 1993–94.

Mr. Maclean

In 1992–93 the underspend on the approved hostel expansion programme was £3.26 million. The current projected underspend for 1993–94 is £1.2 million.

Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what revision was made following a public expenditure survey to the probation accommodation grant scheme as originally set out in the three-year plan for the probation service 1994–97.

Mr. Maclean

Planned provision for the probation accommodation grants scheme as shown in the three-year planning document for the probation service 1994–97 is as follows. The spending plans set out in the 1993–96 planning document published following the 1992 public expenditure survey are shown in parentheses.

£million
1994–95 10.8 (11.9)
1995–96 11.7 (13.2)
1996–97 12–0

Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons will be made redundant as a result of the bail hostel closure plans.

Mr. Maclean

It will be for the individual probation committees and hostel managing committees concerned, as employers, to decide how to manage the consequences of closures in terms of staff redeployment or redundancy; we have not yet received full accounts of their conclusions.

Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the average occupancy level for bail hostels in England and Wales for each of the last 10 quarters.

Mr. Maclean

Occupancy figures for the period April 1991 to March 1992 are not readily available on a quarterly basis. The occupancy figures for the most recent six quarters are as follows:

Per.cent
April to June 1992 66
July to September 1992 61
October to December 1992 62
January to March 1993 65
April to June 1993 64
July to September 1993 67

Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were remanded to a probation or bail hostel in England and Wales; and how many of these were(a) black males and (b) black females, in the latest year for which figures are available.

Mr. Maclean

This information is not held centrally and is not readily available.

Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many residents of probation and bail hostels were aged(a) under 17, (b) 17 to 21 and (c) 21 years or over, in the latest year for which figures are available.

Mr. Maclean

This information is not held centrally and is not readily available.

Mr. Maclennan

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made as to the number of persons who will be received into custody as a result of the proposed bail hostel closures; and what will be the estimated annual cost of such custody.

Mr. Maclean

It remains to be seen whether there are any additional custodial remands. These are decisions for the courts, who will continue to have the option of remanding defendants to other under-utilised bail hostels in the same or neighbouring probation areas.

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