To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the comparative rates of imprisonment of (a) black males and (b) white males; how these rates compare with the proportions in the overall population; and if he will make a statement. (259554)

The most recent assessment of the comparative rates of imprisonment for both males and females together are as follows.

For British nationals, the proportion of black prisoners on 30 June 2007 relative to the population was 7.4 per 1,000 compared to 1.4 per 1,000 for white persons. For the overall population it was 1.5 per 1,000.

The latest data therefore indicates that black people are over five times more likely to be in prison than their white counterparts.

Data are not currently available for males alone.