§ Dr. GodmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the official foreign language prison documents that are available to foreign prisoners being held in prisons.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonResponsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Scottish Prison Service under its chief executive, Mr. E. W. Frizzell. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from E. W. Frizzell to Dr. Norman Godman, dated 20 July 1994:
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton has asked me to reply to your Question about official foreign language prison documents available to foreign prisoners being held in prisons.The Scottish Prison Service provides "Notes for Guidance of Prisoners on Reception into Prison" in a number of languages. There is also available to foreign prisoners a Home Office Immigration and Nationality Department information leaflet which provides information on prisoners' rights and welfare matters. An SPS Prisoner's Information Pack is in course of preparation and consideration is being given to its translation in other languages.In every establishment a member of staff has been appointed to act as Ethnic Minority Liaison Officer with responsibility for monitoring the welfare and progress of foreign prisoners. Their role includes interviewing such prisoners on admission and arranging interpreter facilities for prisoners with language difficulties.