Written question asked by Lord Laird (Ulster Unionist Party), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord McNally (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 26 April 2011.

Prisons: Riots

Question: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord McNally on 29 March (WA 255), what was the cost impact of the decision at Ford Open prison to intervene nine hours after disturbances commenced; how many prisoners were injured before and after the intervention; and whether they will review the current protocols including the timing of the decision to call for external assistance.

Answer: Decisions to intervene during such an incident are not taken based on cost impact. Intervention took place when those in command of the incident judged it to be appropriate to do so for staff, emergency services and prisoners. No prisoners were injured during the disturbance. The decision to request external assistance in the management of an incident is taken on a case-by-case basis. The decision is based upon considerations made by both local managers at the scene of the incident and by the headquarters Gold Command structure that supports the resolution of such incidents. There are no definitive thresholds for calling external assistance and it is essential that each incident is managed in accordance to its specific circumstances. External assistance is drawn from surrounding prisons. NOMS will undertake a review of protocols to see if out-of-hours response times can be reduced.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 8484; 727 c92WA
Session: 2010-12
Related items: Prisons: Riots
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
Written questions
House of Lords
Subjects: Civil disorder HMP Ford
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk