Written question asked by Claire Curtis-Thomas (Labour) on Thursday, 19 January 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 23 January 2006. It was answered by Fiona Mactaggart (Labour) on Monday, 6 February 2006 on behalf of the Home Office.

Prisons

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of correlation between prison overcrowding and deaths in custody; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: Overcrowding alone does not explain why there are self-inflicted deaths in prisons. In 2005, despite rises in the prison population, the number of apparent self-inflicted deaths fell by 18 per cent. in comparison to 2004. Most importantly, a high proportion of prisoners arrive in prison having experienced negative life events that we know increase the risk of an individual harming themselves. We also know that cell-sharing is a protective factor against suicide.That said, managing high numbers of prisoners can lead to an increase in transfers between prisons, itself a time of heightened risk. More people being received into custody may mean that some prisoners are located further from home, which, in turn, may mean that their access to familial or social support is affected. Sometimes overcrowding will reduce the time staff can spend with individual prisoners on care and risk assessment, and it sometimes leads to an increase in the length of time prisoners are locked in their cells, rather than engaged in regime activities, association and other purposeful activity. These factors together increase distress which we know from research by the University of Cambridge is related to suicide rates.

Secondary information