§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in which of Her Majesty's prisons action to control the use of illegal drugs has been intensified within the past six months.
§ Mr. Michael Forsyth[holding answer 16 January 1995]: Responsibility 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. Paul Flynn, dated 24 March 1995:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about which of Her Majesty's Prisons have intensified action to control the use of illegal drugs within the past six months.Reducing the level of drug misuses is one of the Prison Service's main strategic priorities for 1994 to 1997 and as part of this all prisons have been asked to take additional action to prevent the misuse of drugs within their establishments. This is being supported by a range of initiatives from Headquarters to control further the use of illicit drugs, including the development of a new and comprehensive strategy for reducing drug misuse which will be issued shortly.Examples of measures being adopted to combat drug misuse across the Prison Service include:
- wider use of closed (non-contact) visits for those found guilty of drug-related offences;
- increased use of drug sniffer dogs;
- more extensive use of closed circuit television cameras during visits;
- better use of intelligence to target drug dealers and those inmates and visitors attempting to smuggle drugs into prison;
- improved training for staff in identifying drug substances and in searching techniques.
- the start of mandatory drug testing at eight establishments prior to its extension to all establishments.