§ Mr. CoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what guidelines he has issued on how often representatives from British high commissions or British embassies visit British nationals serving prison sentences in foreign countries to check their health and prison conditions; and to whom reports of these visits are made. [97537]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienIn July 1992, the Consular Action Plan (CAP) was established to ensure the principles of the Citizen's Charter were introduced into consular work.
On prison visiting, the CAP sets the target time for the first contact to be made with the detainee within 24 hours of notification of arrest and the first visit within 48 hours of that notification. Thereafter, consular staff are advised to visit at "reasonable" intervals, depending on the circumstances and needs of the individual prisoner. In countries where prison conditions are harsh, efforts are made to ensure that detainees receive at least quarterly visits.
During consular visits, staff will:
ensure the person is not being subjected to degrading or inhumane treatment, or being discriminated against on grounds of nationality;gain an impression of the person's state of health to enable appropriate follow-up action to be taken with the prison authorities;give the person the opportunity to express any legitimate complaint about the conditions of imprisonment;facilitate, if necessary, contact between the detainee and a lawyer;if appropriate, discuss arrangements for the person's return to the UK on release.Reports of every prison visit are sent to the Consular Division of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London. We pass on information about the visits to the next of kin. Unless the detainee has requested that we do not.