§ Mr. LlwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions during 1995 each of the prisons at(a) Cardiff, (b) Swansea and (c) Usk have exceeded the certified normal accommodation; and if he will make a statement. [2167]
§ Miss WiddecombeResponsibility for this matter has been delegated to the temporary Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Alan Walker to Mr. Elfyn Llwyd, dated 30 November 1995:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your Question about the number of occasions during 1995 each of the prisons at (a) Cardiff, (b) Swansea and (c) Usk have exceeded the certified normal accommodation.Cardiff and Swansea prisons have had populations in excess of certified normal accommodation available for use throughout 1995. The latest monthly information available shows that Usk prison had a population in excess of the certified normal accommodation available for use at the end of each of the last 8 months (March to October).886WPopulation pressures in South Wales will be eased considerably when new accommodation comes into use at Cardiff in May/June 1996 (204 places) and at Swansea in August 1996 (103 places). A new prison at Bridgend is planned to come into use in 1997–98 and will provide about 600 new places.