§ Lord Merlyn-Reesasked Her Majesty's Government:
What arrangements have been set in place to deal with Questions and correspondence on prison matters in England and Wales.
§ Lord Williams of MostynI announced on 15 May that in future all parliamentary Questions about the Prison Service in England and Wales will be answered by a Home Office Minister and not by the Director General or another senior Prison Service official. I made clear that this will enable Ministers to answer personally to Parliament for what is done in our prisons rather than leave it to their civil servants.
The Government have made clear that we have no plans to end the Prison Service's status as an executive agency. It has been the practice, since the service became an agency in April 1993, for the Director General to deal with correspondence from Peers and honourable Members on matters which fall within his delegated responsibilities. Peers and honourable Members have been encouraged to write directly to the Director General on such matters, or where they see fit, to governors of individual establishments. In this way day-to-day management matters, often concerning the case of an individual constituent, can be dealt with more efficiently and expeditiously.
Where it is appropriate, Peers should continue to write directly to the Prison Service in this manner.
Correspondence to the Director General should be sent to:
- Mr. Richard Tilt
- Director General
- HM Prison Service
- Cleland House
- Page Street
- LONDON SWIP 4LN
- Fax: 0171 217 6403
The Prison Service Secretariat can deal with queries about correspondence sent to the Director General (the Correspondence Unit can be contacted by telephone on 0171 217 6740).
If Peers write to my right honourable friend the Home Secretary, and my honourable friend the Minister of State (Ms Quin), or myself about day-to-day prison management issues, we will normally ask the Director General to reply in the first instance. However, if Peers are not content with the reply received from the Director General, they should take the matter up with Ministers in writing or by way of a parliamentary Question.
Correspondence about the way in which Ministers exercise their responsibility for the Prison Service, including the strategic direction of the service and overall issues of policy and resources, should continue to be addressed to Ministers, as should correspondence about decisions relating to the release of prisoners on parole or life licence.
92WAThese arrangements are intended to clarify lines of accountability and to ensure that Peers receive replies as quickly as possible. We are most happy to deal with any concerns that Peers may have about these arrangements.