Prisons (Drugs) (Hansard, 18 May 1998)

§ Mr. Flynn
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the current numbers and percentages of the prison population using(a) cannabis, (b) ecstasy and (c) heroin. [41639]

§ Ms Quin
Our best estimate of the numbers of prisoners using illegal drugs is drawn from the results of random mandatory drug testing (MDT). While it is recognised that, for a number of reasons, MDT results cannot be a complete measure of prevalence of drug misuse in prisons, the results do provide for the first time a reliable and statistically valid way of measuring patterns and trends of drug misuse across establishments and over time.
Laboratory screening does not differentiate ecstasy from the amphetamine group as a whole, or heroin from other opiates, so it is not possible to provide figures specifically for ecstasy or heroin.
There were 45,613 random tests in total during the first three quarters of 1997–98. Of these, 7,754 (17 per cent.) were positive for cannabis; 91 (0.2 per cent.) for amphetamines; and 1,870 (4.1 per cent.) for opiates. Final figures are not yet available for the fourth quarter.

§ Mr. Flynn
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of prisons he forecasts will be free of the use of illegal drugs by 2002. [42060]

§ Mr. George Howarth
Our best estimate of the numbers of prisoners using illegal drugs is drawn from the results of random mandatory drug testing (MDT). A number of prisons do return entirely negative results of drug testing. But, because random testing involves the testing of only a proportion of a prison's population each month and, for a number of reasons, MDT results cannot be a complete measure of prevalence of drug misuse in prisons, it would not be safe to claim that a prison is free of drug misuse.
We are committed to the aim of enabling all prisoners to have access to voluntary testing units in order to demonstrate that they are drug free.
Over 4,000 places can now be provided in voluntary testing units and the Prison Service is working to expand this number to achieve our aim.
It would be unrealistic to put a figure on the future number of drug free prisons, since there are too many unpredictable variables. However, we aim through 244W measures already underway and those planned for the future to reduce the number of prisons where illegal drugs are misused.