Oral Answers to Questions

Steve McCabe Excerpts

Tuesday 31st January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Blunt]

Yes, but the payment-by-results scheme is not limited to private sector prisons. We are piloting it in two public sector prisons as well. The National Offender Management Service is to contribute £1.4 million to eight voluntary sector organisations to help with mentoring, and is also involved in a Europe-funded project that is assessing the relative benefits of mentoring by peers and non-peers.

[Steve McCabe (Birmingham, Selly Oak) (Lab)]

Will the Minister consider the effectiveness of training when it comes to security issues? Will he look into how on earth Bilal Zaheer Ahmad, who is serving 12 years in prison and was described as

“a viper in our midst”

by the judge who jailed him under the Terrorism Act 2000, managed to send a six-page letter from his Belmarsh cell that advised potential terrorists on the best way to outwit our police and security services? Will this latest lapse be investigated by the Justice Secretary?

[Mr Blunt]

Of course that will be investigated, as, indeed, is every security breach.