Justice written question – answered at on 12 October 2011.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on how many days the video linkup system at Peterborough Prison has been fully operational in the last three months; and what assessment he has made of the costs to the justice system of the system not being fully operational.
The Prison Court Video Link (PCVL) system at HMP Peterborough underwent necessary repair during the period from late August to early October 2011. This led to less usage of the system while these repairs were undertaken. The system is now fully operational.
The following table provides a comparison of the PCVL usage at HMP Peterborough during the three months July 2011 to September 2011.
2011 | Number of occasions PCVL used at HMP Peterborough |
July | 49 |
August | 50 |
September | 30 |
It is not possible to predict the exact cost that would have been saved on extra prisoner escorts while the system was being repaired, as the number of usages can vary month on month. However, as an indication, we calculate that the saving made by using PCVL instead of escorts to court in July 2011, the last full month when the system was fully operational, was £16,400 for the 49 occasions used. September's lower usage of 30 occasions is therefore likely to have saved around 39% less than normal expectations.
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