§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his written answer of 1 April 2003,Official Report, column 669W, on prisons, when the new multifunction prisons will be operational; and what their combined certified normal accommodation capacity will be. [108313]
§ Hilary BennWork on the development of multifunctional prisons is still at an early stage. No decision has yet been taken on their location, date of opening or size.
§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 1 April 2003,Official Report, column 668W, if he will make a statement on the female prisoners aged under 18 in Holloway Prison. [108314]
§ Hilary BennDiscussions are taking place with the Youth Justice Board about arrangements to remove female prisoners aged under 18 from Holloway. In the meantime, it has been agreed with the Youth Justice Board that Holloway is only to be used for juvenile girls required to be held in or near London under the following circumstances
closeness to court for court appearances for 17-year-olds;girls who are pregnant and need specialist care that cannot be provided elsewhere;girls who require mother and baby facilities that cannot be provided elsewhere;exceptional medical considerations, where a girl needs specialist medical care; andother exceptional circumstances which must be agreed on a case-by-case basis by both the Youth Justice Board Head of Placements and the Prison Service.It is the goal of the Youth Justice Board and the Prison Service to keep this number of girls to a minimum. The Youth Justice Board is providing additional funds for the places at Holloway.
More generally, the Youth Justice Board has already made it clear that it intends to remove all under 17-year-old girls from Prison Service custody during 2003.
69W
§ Dr. VisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether juvenile girls in prisons who are pregnant are given additional food. [108618]
§ Hilary BennThe health care provision for pregnant women in prison reflects that available in the community and dietary and medical supplements are made available and prescribed as necessary.
§ Dr. VisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what punishments juvenile girls in prisons who are pregnant may be subjected to. [108619]
§ Hilary BennPunishments are applied with proper regard to the individual circumstances of the prisoner, including their medical condition. Pregnancy is one of the factors taken into account when determining the appropriate punishment in an individual case.
§ Dr. VisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether juvenile girls held in New Hall prison who are pregnant have been held in the segregation block as a punishment in the last two years. [108620]
§ Hilary BennThe relevant records at New Hall are available from 22 January 2002, and show that no juvenile girls have been held in the circumstances described.