Roseanna Cunningham

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, whether it will provide charts showing cashflow over the two years of construction and 25 years of operation for each model of the public sector comparator, for the Private Build Private Ope…

Answer · Jim Wallace: <TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=2 WIDTH=465><TR><TD WIDTH="9%" VALIGN="TOP" HEIGHT=33>Year</TD><TD WIDTH="20%" VALIGN="TOP" HEIGHT=33><P>PSC Funding<P>(£000)</TD><TD WIDTH="24%" VALIGN="TOP" HEIGHT=33><P>PSC Comparison<P>(£000)</TD><TD WIDTH="47%" VAL…

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 breakdown is for capital and development costs in (a) the comparison model and (b) the funding model in paragraphs 2.2.2 and 2.2.3 respectively in that document, showing heads o…

Answer · Jim Wallace: The breakdown for capital and development costs in the comparison model is shown in the table in paragraph 69 of the Scottish Executive's consultation paper on the <I>Future of the Scottish Prison Estate</I>. The breakdown of the funding model is the same as …

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, what (a) the number of staff, (b) the grade of staff and (c) the wages and wage-related costs are for each year of operation in the prison model to which the public service comparator re…

Answer · Jim Wallace: (a) Five hundred and forty-five. <P>(b) The model does not separately identify grades.<P>(c) The labour and labour related costs in cash value real terms are as follows:<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=2 WIDTH=196><TR><TD WIDTH="29%" VALIGN="TOP" HEIGH…

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 breakdown is for the operational costs in (a) the comparison model and (b) the funding model in paragraphs 2.2.2 and 2.2.3 respectively of that document, showing heads of costs …

Answer · Jim Wallace: The breakdown for capital and development costs in the comparison model is shown in the table in paragraph 75 of the Scottish Executive's consultation paper on the <I>Future of the Scottish Prison Estate</I>. The breakdown of the funding model is the same as …

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, what (a) the risk, (b) the base cost, (c) the impact or overrun threatened, (d) the probability of occurrence, (e) the financial impact calculated and (f) the net present value at 6% are…

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Net Present Value (NPV) of each risk was not calculated in isolation in the PSC model. However, the NPV of each category of risk was calculated using a 6% discount rate and may be summarised as follows:<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=7 WIDTH=463><…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it envisages in its contracts for private prisons or otherwise setting basic standards for training of staff in private prisons, for qualification of staff trainers and for verification of such standards and whether there…

Answer · Jim Wallace: Suitable contractual arrangements already exist for HM Prison Kilmarnock in relation to these, and the Scottish Prison Service would expect to aim to put a similar arrangement in place in any future contracts.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it envisages in its contracts for private prisons setting basic standards for staff turnover and whether this will be a key performance indicator, giving the reasons for its position on this matter.

Answer · Jim Wallace: It is not envisaged that basic standards for staff turnover will be set in any contracts for private prisons. At present staff turnover is not a key performance indicator for any existing prison in Scotland or for the Scottish Prison Service as a whole, and t…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, what basic standards it envisages for medical services at private prisons, giving the reasons for its position on this matter

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:<P>Health care services within prisons are provided in accordance with the Prison Rules and SPS' Health Care Standards. We have recently af…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it envisages setting in its contracts for private prisons basic standards for drug detoxification facilities and whether this will be a key performance indicator, giving the reasons for its position on this matter.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Prison Service's Vision is to improve its correctional services, of which drug regimes are a part, in all present and future prisons; and is, and will be, able to establish suitable contractual arrangements to achieve this.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it envisages setting in its contracts for private prisons a limit on waiting times to see a social worker and whether this will be a key performance indicator, giving the reasons for its position on this matter.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Prison Service's Vision is to improve its correctional services, of which prison social work is part, in all present and future prisons, and is, and will be, able to establish suitable contractual arrangements to achieve this.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, what basic standards it envisages for social work at private prisons, whether these will include involvement of social workers in induction, work with families, pre-release work with inmates, sentence planning and suicide risk ma…

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Prison Service's Vision is to improve its correctional services, of which these features are a part, in all present and future prisons, and is, and will be, able to establish suitable contractual arrangements to achieve this.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, what guarantees it envisages putting in place to prevent a private prison operator withdrawing from operating a prison in breach of its contract.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Prison Service would intend putting suitable contractual arrangements in place as in the past.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) estates review, what basic standards it envisages putting in place for improvements in literacy, numeracy and other basic skills among prisoners serving terms of imprisonment at private prisons, whether any key performance indicators will …

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Prison Service's Vision is to improve its correctional services of which literacy, numeracy and basic skills are a part. There already are KPI's relating to education, prisoner programmes and approved prisoner activities covering all existing pri…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will release figures comparing relative improvements in literacy, numeracy or other basic skills for prisoners serving terms of imprisonment at private prisons and at public prisons and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:<P>No such data is currently available within SPS as a whole. Since prisoners move between prisons during their sentence it is difficult to …

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to compile figures to compare recidivism rates at public prisons and private prisons, giving the reasons for its position on this matter.

Answer · Jim Wallace: No. Measuring recidivism is a complex issue, and recidivists may commit further crimes for which custodial sentences are not awarded by sentencers and the reason for recidivism are affected by many factors outwith prison. Furthermore, individual prisoners may…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it would envisage drawing staff from a private prison in the event of a contingency such as a riot at another prison facility and, if so, whether any payment would be made, detailing the services that would be provided an…

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:<P>At present all prisons participate in mutual aid arrangements without payment. We see no reason why this practice should not continue, but we w…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether the private prisons envisaged will be allowed to take prisoners from other jurisdictions and, if so, from which jurisdictions and under what circumstances.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:<P>Yes. As is presently the case with HMP Kilmarnock, any new private prisons would be able to take prisoners from other jurisdictions in the same…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it will detail all types of information that will be regarded as commercially confidential in its dealings with private prison operators.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Such details would be considered by the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) in the procurement process. The intention would be to maximise the information availability subject to consideration of any potential impact on security and value for money as was done by S…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Prison Service estates review, in estimating the cost of private prisons, has included the cost of applying freedom of information provisions to the private prison operators and, if so, what these costs were estimated as being and how they were arrived at.

Answer · Jim Wallace: No, but the costs are likely to be minimal in relation to the total costs.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail the work that PricewaterhouseCoopers and its predecessor firms have done for it in the last 10 years, specifying the work produced, the type of work and the price paid in each case.

Answer · Andy Kerr: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the answer given to question S1W-22582 on 14 February 2002 provided details of expenditure with PricewaterhouseCoopers since 1997.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what PricewaterhouseCoopers were paid for production of the Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, showing each head of costs.

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:<P>I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-24578 on 26 April 2002.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it envisages ensuring by contract or otherwise that it has the power to veto the takeover of the operator of one of the private prisons envisaged in the review and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Such matters would fall to be considered by the Scottish Prison Service in the procurement process.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, what procedures will be used for vetting the operating track record of companies tendering to operate private prisons.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Such matters would be considered by the Scottish Prison Service in the procurement process.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will state, for each new-build houseblock development by the Scottish Prison Service in the last twenty years, the number of prisoner places, the other facilities included, the length of time taken to complete the block, any delays in completion and the reason for them, and the…

Answer · Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:<P>The new-build houseblock accommodation constructed in existing prisons in the last 20 years has been at HM Prison Greenock and HM Prison Edinbu…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, what its position is on the fact that PricewaterhouseCoopers did not audit the methodology of determining costs and risk pricing inputs for the public sector comparator in the Financial Review of Scottish Prison Service Estates R…

Answer · Jim Wallace: PricewaterhouseCoopers were not asked to do an audit. They were asked to undertake a financial review to support investment decisions that form part of the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review. The Executive is content that this verification process carried…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it is satisfied that the Scottish Prison Service adopted an appropriate and reasonable methodology for establishing costs and risk pricing in the public sector comparator model, giving the reasons for its position on this…

Answer · Jim Wallace: Yes. As I have made clear the costs of the PSC were a factor in my decision to have the costs and underlying assumptions verified by PricewaterhouseCoopers independently of the Scottish Prison Service. The resulting verification of the costs and methodology w…

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether, in agreeing the operation specification for a private prison, it would specify a minimum acceptable staffing level.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Scottish Prison Service see no need to do so but they would consider such matters during the procurement process.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive why no evaluation was made in the Scottish Prison Service estates review of market-testing of the management of prisons.

Answer · Jim Wallace: Such an evaluation is irrelevant to the proposals. The Scottish Prison Service has at present no plans to market test the management of prisons.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether prison officers transferred from the prisons to be closed under the estates review to new private prisons will retain their present status, salary and pension rights.

Answer · Jim Wallace: No such transfers are proposed.

11 Apr 2002 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service estates review, whether it will guarantee that a proportion of prison officers will be transferred from the prisons to be closed under the estates review to the new private prisons and, if so, what proportion will be transferred, and what the re…

Answer · Jim Wallace: No such transfers are proposed.