§ Lord Windleshamasked Her Majesty's Government:
What effect the Home Secretary's recently announced decision to bring into force Section 4 of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997 will have on the projections of long-term trends in the prison population as published in Issue 1/99 of the Home Office Statistical Bulletin on 20 January. [HL757]
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Williams of Mostyn)The projections published on 20 January in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin 1/99 already include an estimate of around 4,000 added to the prison population over 10 years as a result of the implementation of Section 4 of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997.