§ Ms RuddockTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the Prison Service has yet received a copy of Commander Alex Marnoch's report into the death of Ernest Hogg, the prisoner who died while in the custody of Group 4 Court Escort Services Ltd.; and if he will place a copy in the Library.
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§ 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 Mrs Joan Ruddock, dated 10 March 1994:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about Mr. Marnoch's report into the death of Mr. Ernest Hogg.I have not yet received Mr. Marnoch's final report but I expect to do shortly.It is not intended to place a copy of the report in the Library. It is not our practice to publish the reports of internal investigations which the Prison Service carries out for its own management purposes. There are two main reasons for this.First, given the closed and potentially volatile nature of the prison environment, publishing reports into incidents could cause problems for the day to day operation and management of the prison system. Knowledge of their contents and conclusions could, for example, lead to reprisals against staff. Second, the prospect of publication could discourage witnesses from being totally candid in the information they provide. If they knew their identities were to be revealed, they might be at risk of being treated as informers. This could make it more difficult for the Prison Service to discover the truth, learn the appropriate lessons and take prompt and effective follow up action.We will, however, publish the substance of Mr. Marnoch's main recommendations and the action taken to implement them as soon as we are in a position to do so.