§ Mr. LetwinTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when the prison and probation ombudsman was established; [48134]
(2)what the remit is of the prison and probation ombudsman; [48136]
(3)how many members of staff are employed by the prison and probation ombudsman; [48137]
(4)what the cost of the prison and probation ombudsman was in the last 12 months. [48315]
445W
§ Mr. BlunkettThe office of prisons ombudsman for England and Wales was established in 1994 under the previous Conservative Administration following the report by Lord Woolf and Sir Stephen Tumim on Prison Disturbances (Cm 1456) and the White Paper "Custody, Care and Justice" (Cm 1647). The remit was extended on 1 September 2001 to encompass complaints both from prisoners and those supervised by the National Probation Service (NPS). The office was re-titled prisons and probation ombudsman.
The prisons and probation ombudsman is independent of the Prison Service and National Probation Service. The ombudsman is appointed by the Home Secretary and reports to him. The ombudsman investigates complaints from prisoners, and those on license or otherwise under probation supervision, regarding aspects of their treatment. Complainants must first have sought redress through use of the internal Prison Service or NPS complaints systems. The number of complaints has increased rapidly over the last two years. In 2001–02, 1,100 complaints were investigated.
The ombudsman submits an annual report to the Home Secretary which the Home Secretary lays before Parliament.
Provisional outturn operating costs for the financial year April 2001 to March 2002 were £1.66 million. The unit employs 41 members of staff.