05 December 2003
The Prison Service should not be afraid to come down hard on failing prisons and there is scope for both public and private sector prisons to learn from each other, MPs said this week.
A Public Accounts Committee report published on December 2 on the operational performance of Private Finance Initiative prisons concluded that there was a strong case for co-operation and exchange of good practice between publicly and privately managed prisons.
The Prison Service has signed nine PFI contracts since 1995 and seven such prisons are now operational, holding 5,000 inmates – 7% of the prison population.
But the PAC recommended that PFI prison staff could benefit from joint training on security matters, while public sector prisons could learn lessons on the treatment of prisoners.
PAC chair Edward Leigh said: 'Prisoners at PFI prisons feel they are shown greater respect and are better treated than those in public prisons. But the flip side is that more experienced officers in public prisons are less likely to "turn a blind eye" and compromise security.'
Leigh went on to call for Service Level Agreements to emphasise good standards of service as well as price and said they should be extended to apply to public sector prisons. 'Failing prisons – both public and private – need a tough approach,' he said.
The report also recommended greater consistency in the attitudes of PFI prison controllers, who assess prison performance against the terms of the contract, and said there was a need for more reliable performance data.
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