MP Faisal Rashid
WARRINGTON South MP Faisal Rashid says he is “deeply concerned” by the decision making process to place sex offenders at Appleton Thorn open prison,with no local consultation.
Mr Rashid, who first became aware of the proposal by an emailed letter from the Justice Minister at 9.45pm on Monday evening, says he has “serious concerns” about the lack of local consultation regarding population changes at HMP Thorn Cross, giving authorisation for the prison to accept category D men convicted of sexual offences as part of its population.
In a letter of response to Rory Stewart MP (Minister of State for Justice) calling for a stop to any further action pending talks, Mr Rashid said: “To be clear, this is the first time that I have received any information about the change. On receipt of your letter I contacted Warrington Borough Council to ask whether they had received any information about the Government’s decision on this. They had not.
“It is completely unacceptable that both myself, as the local Member of Parliament, and Warrington Borough Council, as the local authority, have not been involved in any stage of this decision-making process. Nor have we been given any prior information which would suggest that this change was likely to occur. I find this deeply concerning.
“Less than 24 hours after being informed about the change, I have been contacted by the local media about this issue. I have also been contacted by local residents who, rightfully so, are deeply unhappy about having this change imposed upon them without any prior consultation or any information about what the change will mean.
“HMP Thorn Cross is located in close proximity to Appleton Thorn Primary School and two nurseries. Given this, the decision to allow this change would seem to suggest that no work has been undertaken to understand the area before considering whether or not the site is suitable for this change.
“Given the concerns of my constituents, which I share, I would be grateful if you could respond to the following points:
• Please clarify exactly what is meant by this category.
• What will the change mean in regards to the numbers of inmates at the prison – will this change lead to a population increase?
• Why was no consultation undertaken with me, Warrington Borough Council or with local residents?
• How and when was the decision taken to make this change? The prison is located in close proximity to a local school. Was this known when the decision was taken?
“In consideration of the points raised above, I urge you to stop any further action on this matter until you have met with me and the Chief Executive of Warrington Borough Council, Professor Steven Broomhead, to discuss the issue in more detail.”
News of the the proposal to accept sex offenders at the prison sparked outrage on social media from concerned local residents and councillors after the story was first reported by warrington-worldwide yesterday.
Local borough Cllr Councillor Ryan Bate said: “We fully share our residents understandable concerns, which given the prison’s proximity to a school seem to go against not only common sense but also a historic commitment made by the government that no sex offenders would ever be incarcerated at Thorn Cross.
“We will require a great deal of convincing that this change could be made in a way which does not jeopardise the safety of the people of Appleton Thorn. Given the seriousness of this case, Councillor Biggin and I have requested a meeting with Thorn Cross’ governor Mick Povall at the earliest opportunity to try and resolve this issue.”
Click on the image to read Mr Rashid’s letter in full
