§ Mr. LoughtonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many suicides there have been by prisoners in each of the last five years. [123491]
§ Mr. BoatengThe information requested is given in the table.
Self-inflicted deaths in HM Prison Service establishments in England and Wales: 1995–99 Calendar year Number of self-inflicted deaths 1995 59 1996 64 1997 68 1998 83 1999 91 Notes:
1. To date (19 May) there have been 35 self-inflicted deaths in prison custody in England and Wales.
2. Totals for each year contain the numbers of all self-inflicted deaths in prison custody; not only those deaths where there has been an inquest verdict of suicide.
3. The term employed by the Prison Service to refer to an apparent suicide is "self-inflicted death". This is broader than the term suicide and includes all those deaths where it is clear that the person has acted specifically to take his/her own life. It is not restricted to the official verdict from the Coroner's inquest where verdicts of "open" or "misadventure" may be recorded in cases where there was doubt about a person's intent to end their life.