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<p>We do not centrally hold data on the individual reasons for determinate sentence
prisoner transfers, including transfers following re-categorisation and when prisoners
have been returned to closed conditions from open prisons. Where this is available,
the information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost as it would involve
a manual trawl through the records of every prisoner to identify if they have ever
been held in open conditions and subsequently returned to closed conditions.</p><p>
</p><p> </p><p>However, the information, in part, is centrally available in respect
of indeterminate sentence prisoners.</p><p> </p><p>Table 1 provides the number of
indeterminate sentence prisoners who have been returned from open conditions to closed
conditions and where the transfer occurred between 1 April 2011 and 31 March 2014,
grouped by year and by reason for transfer. The data has been drawn from administrative
IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible
errors with data entry and processing.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to provide a breakdown
of this information by index offence as this information is not held centrally; to
obtain it would require a manual trawl through every case and this would incur disproportionate
cost.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>REASON FOR RETURN
TO CLOSED PRISON</p></td><td><p>2011-12</p></td><td><p>2012-13</p></td><td><p>2013-14</p></td><td><p>Grand
Total</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Abscond</p></td><td><p>117</p></td><td><p>161</p></td><td><p>170</p></td><td><p>448</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Antisocial
Behaviour</p></td><td><p>48</p></td><td><p>96</p></td><td><p>74</p></td><td><p>218</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Breach
of Licence Conditions</p></td><td><p>30</p></td><td><p>33</p></td><td><p>56</p></td><td><p>120</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Drink/Drugs</p></td><td><p>139</p></td><td><p>171</p></td><td><p>256</p></td><td><p>568</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>FNP</p></td><td><p>
</p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p>3</p></td><td><p>3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Healthcare
issues</p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p>5</p></td><td><p>5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>New
charges/offences</p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p>2</p></td><td><p>2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Non
compliance</p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p>1</p></td><td><p>28</p></td><td><p>29</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Other</p></td><td><p>135</p></td><td><p>235</p></td><td><p>298</p></td><td><p>668</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Prisoner
request</p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p>2</p></td><td><p>2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Psychology
concerns/issues</p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p>6</p></td><td><p>6</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Serious
breach of prison rules</p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p>1</p></td><td><p>21</p></td><td><p>22</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Grand
Total</p></td><td><p>469</p></td><td><p>698</p></td><td><p>921</p></td><td><p>2,087</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>
</p><p>The main purpose of open conditions is to test prisoners in conditions more
similar to those that they will face in the community. Time spent in open prisons
affords prisoners the opportunity to find work, re-establish family ties, reintegrate
into the community and ensure housing needs are met. For many prisoners who have spent
a considerable amount of time in custody; these can assist in their successful reintegration
in the community and protecting the public.</p><p>We make no apologies for taking
a firm approach in returning prisoners to closed conditions wherever we need to do
so.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The number of temporary release failures remains very low;
less that one failure in every 1,000 releases and about five in every 100,000 releases
involving alleged offending, but we take each and every incident seriously. The Government
has already ordered immediate changes to tighten up the system as a matter of urgency.
With immediate effect, prisoners will no longer be transferred to open conditions
if they have previously absconded from open prisons; or if they have failed to return
or reoffended whilst released on temporary licence.</p><p> </p>
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