Parliamentary questions

Roseanna Cunningham

965 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to paragraph 75 of its Scottish Prison Service Estate: Consultation Paper, whether it will give (a) a breakdown of each main element of the running costs and (b), in respect of each such cost, projected cash-flow charts for the 25 years of operation.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The cash value real, broken down by each main element of running cost, for each of the construction and operating years is provided in the following table:<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=7 WIDTH=604><TR><TD WIDTH="23%" VALIGN="BOTTOM"> </TD><TD WIDTH=…

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to paragraph 77 of its Scottish Prison Service Estate: Consultation Paper, what steps the Scottish Prison Service took in order to evaluate the robustness of the operator's staffing proposals at HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Answer · Jim Wallace: All proposals received were fully evaluated by the operational team to ensure that the bids met the required specification. Thereafter, an evaluation panel consisting of senior Scottish Prison Service staff, including operational staff, and a representative f…

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the Financial Review of the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review by PricewaterhouseCoopers, whether any sum has been calculated and added to the cost of private prisons to the Executive for any additional risk that private sector prisons will misreport or not report fail…

Answer · Jim Wallace: If based on the HM Prison Kilmarnock contract, such events would result in loss of revenue for the contractor rather than additional cost to Scottish Prison Service.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether the private build and operate model assumes that there will be a requirement for additional staff to be employed in the first six months of operation; if so, what the details of such a requirement are and what the reasons…

Answer · Jim Wallace: Yes, and details would be subject to negotiation. The requirement is to provide operational security during the high risk opening period.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the allowance for medical facilities costs, referred to on page 18 of the Financial Review of the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review by PricewaterhouseCoopers, what such allowance was made in the estates review public sector comparator.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-25107 today. For similar reasons, it would require a disproportionate amount of time and expertise to disaggregate the specific figure for medical facilities from the total costs.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the allowance for prison industries costs, referred to on page 18 of the Financial Review of the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review by PricewaterhouseCoopers, what such allowance was made in the estates review public sector comparator.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Allowance was made in calculating the costs for the area and resources (including staff) required to deliver prisons industries. These were included in the calculation of total building and running costs; account was taken of risk factors before the NPV calcu…

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the capital costs to the Scottish Prison Service have been of each prison industries project in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The information requested is not available. The most recent major industries capital project was the building and equipping of the new timber w…

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the allowance for Technical Support Group facilities in the M&E services, referred to on page 18 of the Financial Review of the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review by PricewaterhouseCoopers, what such allowance was made in the estates review public sector comparator.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive . with regard to the Scottish Prison Services estate review, whether the prisons under the private build and operate model will be hub prisons for medical services.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) would at present regard a 700 place as a hub prison for medical services. In relation to any new prisons, the SPS would decide whether the hub system remained the best system given a smaller number of larger sized prisons.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is appropriate for prisoners to be able to see from a prison wing what is happening in one or more other wings.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:This is a feature in many prisons, is not considered to be a problematic issue and can be beneficial.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, what lessons it drew from the report PFI and Market Testing in the Prison Service by Patrick Carter in January 2002.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Carter report is useful in pointing out the advantages in continuing with private sector provision of services and the potential stimulus it provides for public sector prison reform and achieving of best value; and is consistent with the estates review.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, what lessons it drew from the report of the United States General Accounting Office of August 1996, Public and Private Prisons - Studies Comparing Operational Costs and/or Quality of Service.

Answer · Jim Wallace: None.

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it took to ascertain the independence of PricewaterhouseCoopers before awarding it the contract to carry out the financial review of the Scottish Prison Service estates review and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Jim Wallace: PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) are a large independent company of accountants with a world-wide reputation. PwC were asked to conduct this review because of their acknowledged expertise in the field of Public/Private Partnerships. The Executive is satisfied tha…

16 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24349 by Mr Jim Wallace on 10 April 2002, how it judges best value in prison operation, given that it does not include the costs of the prison controller and his staff when stating the cost of HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The costs of the prison controller and staff are minimal in relation to the total costs and as such were considered by PricewaterhouseCoopers n…

15 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will place in the employment contracts of persons in the senior management of the Scottish Prison Service involved in monitoring the performance of private prisons, or in ensuring contract compliance of private prison operators, a clause preventing them from taking work from a…

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The Scottish Prison Service has no plans, at this time, to place such a clause in staff's Terms and Conditions of employment, as the current Ci…

15 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether a clause preventing members of the senior management of the Scottish Prison Service involved in monitoring the performance of private prisons, or in ensuring contract compliance of private prison operators, from taking work from a private prison operator for a specified period fo…

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The Civil Service Business Appointment Rules provide for this, therefore no specific clause within such staff's contracts is deemed necessary. …

15 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24286 by Mr Jim Wallace on 8 April 2002, whether any closing date for offers was intimated to persons expressing interest following the advertising for sale of the buildings of HM Prison Penninghame on 24 February 2000 and, if so, what that date was.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:Yes. A closing date of 3 May 2000 was set.

15 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24285 by Mr Jim Wallace on 8 April 2002, on what date the sale of the buildings of former HM Prison Penninghame was advertised in the Estates Ga'ette and for what reason.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:10 June 2000. The Estates Gazette was deemed to have the required breadth of circulation.

12 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24126 by Mr Jim Wallace on 8 April 2002, what the reasons were in each case for suspending certificates to perform custodial duties in accordance with paragraph 3 of Schedule 6 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows: It would be inappropriate to provide this information which could be linked with the individuals concerned.

12 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24127 by Mr Jim Wallace on 8 April 2002, what the reasons were in each case for revoking certificates to perform custodial duties in accordance with paragraph 4 of Schedule 6 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:It would be inappropriate to provide this information which could be linked with the individuals concerned.

12 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24129 by Mr Jim Wallace on 8 April 2002, whether there have been any reports to the procurator fiscal of offences under paragraph 5 of Schedule 6 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 and, if so, how many such reports there have been and …

Answer · Colin Boyd: No such reports have been received.

12 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review and the table of private prison prices in paragraph 3.3, page 27, whether it will detail for each prison the formula used to calculate net present value and the assumptions made in each c…

Answer · Jim Wallace: Her Majesty's Prison Service provided the net present values (NPVs) as at the contract date for each prison in England and Wales. PricewaterhouseCoopers used the following methodology to calculate the NPV figures:NPVa = [((NPVh/L…

12 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review and the table of private prison prices in paragraph 3.3, page 27, whether it will state the real cash value of each of the prisons mentioned, calculated in the same way as those shown for…

Answer · Jim Wallace: <TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=7 WIDTH=236><TR><TD WIDTH="50%" VALIGN="TOP">Prison</TD><TD WIDTH="50%" VALIGN="TOP">Cash Value Real(£000)</TD></TR><TR><TD WIDTH="50%" VALIGN="TOP">Altcourse</TD><TD WIDTH="50%" VALIGN="TOP">504,824</TD></T…

12 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, why the chart in paragraph 1.4, page 6, shows net present values averaged only over the 25 years of operation of the prison models and not over the 27 years of operation and construction…

Answer · Jim Wallace: The chart does not show net present value averaged over 27 years because prisoner places are not available for use during the construction period.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, whether it will provide a table equivalent to that in paragraph 3.5 of the report which includes the costs of HM Prison Altcourse and HM Prison Parc.

Answer · Jim Wallace: No. Inclusion of HM Prison Altcourse and HM Prison Parc in the table would not be appropriate, for the reasons given in paragraph 3.3 of the PricewaterhouseCoopers Review.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, whether any calculation has been made and added to the cost of private prisons of the cost to it of any additional risk of pursuing a private prison operator for non-compliance with the …

Answer · Jim Wallace: Non-compliance would not result in any additional cost or risk. There would be no need to pursue a private prison operator for non-compliance since the remedy for non-compliance would be to retain monies that would otherwise be payable under the contract.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, whether any calculation has been made and added to the cost of private prisons of the cost to it of any additional risk that private sector prisons may fail in the rehabilitation of pris…

Answer · Jim Wallace: No such cost has been included in any of the options outlined in the Estates Review. Since there is no additional risk any associated cost would be applicable equally to both public and private sector prisons.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, what formula was used by PricewaterhouseCoopers for the calculation of net present value, detailed in full.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:The net present value calculation was made using the formula as follows:Net present value of the stream of cashflows = CF1/(1+r)<…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, what the price in real terms would be for the Public/Private Partnership Private Build Private Operate model, showing the price in real terms for each year of the contract discounted back…

Answer · Jim Wallace: This information is not available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review what the justification is for choosing a 6% discount rate to calculate net present value.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Six per cent is the discount rate laid down in Treasury Guidance.