§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the number of successful claims for damages by, and the amount of compensation that has been given to, prisoners who have sued the Home Office for being kept in prison too long, in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [9501]
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§ Miss Widdecombe[holding answer 17 December 1996]: 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 Richard Tilt to Mr. Archy Kirkwood, dated 18 December 1996:
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the number of successful claims for damages by, and the amount of compensation that has been given to, prisoners who have sued the Home Office for being kept in prison too long, in each of the last five years.Information on individual compensation claim payments made by or on behalf of prison governors to prisoners is not collected centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The total expenditure on compensation payments to prisoners for detention beyond the due date of release is:
- 1991–92: £25,982
- 1992–93: £13,510
- 1993–94: £18,351
- 1994–95: £53,009
- 1995–96: £31,941