§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many of the asylum seekers on hunger strike at HMP Birmingham/Winson Green, since 5 May have been detained longer than two months; and if he will list them and the periods for which they have been detained; [782]
(2) how many of the cases of asylum seekers on hunger strike at HMP Birmingham/Winson Green have been brought for independent review before a judicial authority; [784]
(3) how many of the hunger strikers at HMP Birmingham/Winson Green have alleged torture in their applications for asylum; and, of those, how many have had access to independent medical assessment of their allegations. [785]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThere is currently only one asylum seeker refusing regular prison meals at Her Majesty's prison Birmingham. It would not be proper to disclose details of an individual case.
§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the detained asylum seekers at HMP Birmingham/Winson Green were detained prior to an initial determination of their application. [786]
§ Mr. O'BrienAs at 30 May 1997, the most recent date for which information is available, a total of 11 persons who had sought asylum at some stage were recorded as being solely detained under Immigration Act powers in Her Majesty's Prison, Winson Green, Birmingham. Of those, nine persons were detained prior to an initial determination on their asylum application. Three of these nine detainees had previously been detained as part of a criminal sentence. They have all subsequently had an initial determination and four have also been through the appeals process and are now awaiting removal.
§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to undertake a review of the policy of detention of asylum seekers. [787]
§ Mr. O'BrienA general review of immigration detention policy is currently being undertaken.
7W
§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are held in detention under immigration and asylum legislation in(a) prison and (b) detention centres; and of those how many have been held for (i) 0 to three months, (ii) three to six months, (iii) six months to one year and (iv) over one year. [1748]
§ Mr. O'BrienThe number of persons held in detention under immigration and asylum legislation on 31 March 1997, the most recent date that statistics are available, is given in table 1. An analysis of this data by length of detention is shown in table 2.
Table 1: Persons detained under immigration and asylum legislation on 31 March 1997 Number Prisons Service establishments in England and Wales1 475 Immigration Service detention centres 509 Total 984 1 Excluding persons in police cells and Scottish prisons; data on such persons are incomplete.
Table 2: Length of detention of persons detained under immigration and asylum legistration on 31 March 1997 Number 0 to 3 months 1 594 3 to 6 months 211 6 months to 1 year 153 over 1 year 26 Total 984 1 Includes and estimate of non asylum port cases detained.
§ Mr. Marshall-AndrewsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Prison Service is taking to investigate and resolve the unrest among asylum seekers held in Rochester Prison. [1328]
§ Ms Joyce QuinCurrent unrest amongst the general population of immigration detainees held in Rochester prison is believed to centre on complaints about prison food, being locked in their cells for longer than normal and their access to education facilities being cut. However, no formal complaint has been received.
The meals and menus are checked regularly by the governor, the area manager, catering adviser and members of the Board of Visitors and have been adjudged wholesome and varied. The regime of the whole prison has been temporarily reduced because of the need to provide staff for a bedwatch on a prisoner in the Medway hospital, aggravated by a high level of sick leave. This has resulted in a reduction in the time out of cell of all prisoners and the closure of education facilities for the detainees. To compensate for this, wing-based education is being introduced for the detainees from Monday 2 June 1997 until a normal regime can be restored.