Prison Service Programmes

HC Deb 13 March 2001 vol 364 cc518-9W

Mr. Peter Bottomley

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the Prison Service programmes RESPOND and RESPECT, and on plans for similar programmes in the Police Service. [153463]

Mr. Boateng

The Prison Service RESPOND (Race Equality for Staff and Prisoners) programme unveiled in February 1999, consists of five main strategiesConfronting racial harassment and discrimination. Ensuring fairness in recruitment, promotion, appraisal and selection. Developing and supporting minority ethnic staff. Ensuring equal opportunities for minority ethnic prisoners. Recruiting minority ethnic staff.

The RESPOND programme enjoys the support of the Prison Service trade unions and staff associations, and £3 million was earmarked to take it forward over the first three years.

A key element of the RESPOND programme is the development of RESPECT (Racial Equality for Staff), a national minority ethnic staff support network aiming to eliminate racism in the workplace. Around 1,500 delegates attended the launch of RESPECT in January 2001 at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Birmingham.

RESPECT is able to provide support to minority ethnic staff who claim to suffer from racial harassment or discrimination. A free-phone support-line will be operational from Monday, 2 April 2001. Specially trained volunteers will offer the alleged victim a sympathetic ear and help them to identify courses of action available to them. RESPECT complements the help and support that is available through existing channels such as Prison Service Staff Care and Welfare Services, and trade unions and staff associations. RESPECT has around 900 members.

The Home Secretary's Action Plan, published in response to the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report, sets out a comprehensive programme to improve community and race relations. The 70 recommendations are wide-ranging, and those which apply to the police are concerned with tackling discrimination both internally within the service and as a service provider. On 22 February the Home Secretary published the Second Annual Report on Progress against the Action Plan. The Action Plan contains elements common to the RESPECT and RESPOND programmes in the Prison Service, such as targets on the recruitment, retention and progression of minority ethnic police officers and a programme of racism awareness training within police services to be delivered to all front-line staff by the end of 2002.