Yorkshire prisons to remain in public hands

25 Nov 13
Three prisons set for privatisation are to remain under the management of the Prison Service, Justice Secretary Chris Grayling has announced

Management of the South Yorkshire prisons – Lindholme, Moorland and Hatfield – was set to be contracted out to Serco. The Ministry of Justice named the firm as preferred bidder in July, although the award of the contract was delayed pending the outcome of investigations into Serco’s operation of its electronic monitoring contracts. A government audit found that Serco had been overcharging the MoJ for monitoring activities that had ceased or never taken place. A Serious Fraud Office investigation is currently under way.

However, Grayling said on Friday: ‘The impact of the delay and the uncertainty this has created mean that for operational reasons we cannot postpone the outcome of the competition process any further. I have therefore decided that the competition for these prisons will cease and that all three prisons will be managed by HM Prison Service.’

Grayling added that all three prisons would ‘immediately’ begin applying for a new public sector benchmark, which would ensure prisons are reformed and savings secured.

‘This approach provides a workable solution and in the circumstances is the best possible option both for the prisons involved and for the public,’ he said, adding the government remained ‘fully committed’ to a mixed market for public services.

Ed Casey, Serco’s acting group chief executive, said: ‘From meetings with the UK government it is clear that the operational needs of the prisons will be best served by the necessary changes being implemented without further delay.  

‘We are also continuing to make good progress across the various audits, reviews and our proposed corporate renewal programme within the timing previously communicated by government.’

Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, called the decision a ‘welcome U-turn’ and urged the justice secretary to halt the prison outsourcing programme.

‘He should go further and continue to reverse the justice privatisation tide currently being witnessed across the country. Private firms are often much better at winning lucrative contracts than delivering the goods,' she said.

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