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Home Office

Answer

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his policy concerning the placement of life sentence prisoners in open prisons. [75558] Mr. George Howarth: A period in open conditions is regarded as essential for most life sentence prisoners before they are considered for release on life licence. This period allows for the testing of areas of concern in conditions which are closer to those in the community than are found in closed prisons. Decisions to transfer life sentence prisoners to open conditions are taken by Ministers on consideration of recommendations made by the Parole Board. The Secretary of State's directions to the Parole Board in relation to mandatory life sentence prisoners require the Board, before making a recommendation for transfer to open conditions, to balance the risks against the benefits of such a move, taking into account: a. whether the lifer has made sufficient progress towards tackling offending behaviour to minimise the risk and gravity of re-offending and whether the benefits suggest that a transfer to open conditions is worthwhile at that stage; and b. whether the lifer is trustworthy enough not to abscond or to commit further offences (either inside or outside the prison). In each case the Board is also directed to consider whether: a. the extent to which the risk that the lifer will abscond or commit further offences while in an open prison is minimal; b. the lifer has shown by his performance in closed conditions that he has made positive efforts to address his attitudes and behavioural problems and the extent to which significant progress has been made in doing so; and c. the lifer is likely to derive benefit from being able to continue to address areas of concern in an open prison and to be tested in a more realistic environment. The same considerations apply in principle to recommendations for the transfer to open conditions of those subject to discretionary and other life sentences.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

327 c332W; 75558

Session

1998-99

Subjects

Prisons Policy Life imprisonment Parole Board Open prisons