§ Mr. CoxTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what reports he has received from the governor of Wandsworth prison in respect of the background details of the suicides that have taken place in Wandsworth prison in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythResponsibility 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 Mr. Tom Cox, dated 20 March 1995:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about what reports he has received from the governor of Wandsworth prison in respect of the background details of the suicides that have taken place in Wandsworth prison in each of the last three years.Each death in custody is always the subject of an internal Prison Service investigation, the results of which are then reported to Prison Service headquarters. Each of the six suicides which have occurred at Wandsworth prison in the past three years was reported in this way. Ministers are not routinely briefed on the content of these investigation reports.