Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of people in prison for knife relate crime, broken down by age.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Statistics of this nature could not be obtained without incurring disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to help ensure that victims of domestic abuse and specifically children are supported and rehabilitated through court processes.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Government is committed to ensuring that victims of domestic abuse, including children, are properly supported through court processes in England and Wales.
We are reforming court procedures in private family law proceedings relating to children to make them safer and more child-centred, including through the expansion of the Pathfinder model. This innovative court model uses a less adversarial approach for private law children proceedings and is now operating in 10 court areas including all of Wales. The model sees the courts work closely with local domestic abuse agencies, to ensure that specialist support and access to domestic abuse risk assessments are in place. We are committed to expanding the model so that more people can benefit from this approach.
We are also committed to improving the criminal court response to domestic abuse and are considering additional measures to achieve better outcomes for victims. As recommended by the Independent Sentencing Review, this includes considering whether to expand the use of Specialist Domestic Abuse Courts.
Victims of domestic abuse involved in family court proceedings, as well as in civil or criminal court proceedings, may have protections such as special measures, including giving evidence via a video link or from behind a screen. Alongside this, abusers may be prohibited from directly cross-examining their victims, in family and civil proceedings. In these cases, the court may appoint a qualified legal representative instead. In the criminal courts there are longstanding statutory prohibitions against an unrepresented defended cross-examining a complainant or witness. Practice Directions in the criminal and family courts also permit Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs) and Independent Sexual Violence Advisers (ISVAs) to accompany parties in proceedings, which provides further support to victims.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to Question 101467 answered on 5 January 2026 about Men, if he will speak to Cabinet colleagues about the potential merits of the appointment of a Minister or Government-appointed Ambassador to capture common themes and trends facing men and boys arising from the Men and Boys Summit and the Men's Health Strategy.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Prime Minister has tasked the Deputy Prime Minister and myself, the Minister for Victims and Violence Against Women and Girls, with leading the Government’s efforts to tackle the challenges faced by men and boys. This work is in development, but we will of course ensure that the Men and Boys Summit and its outcomes align with existing strategies and activity across Government, including the Men’s Health Strategy. We will keep Cabinet colleagues updated and provide further detail in due course.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much their Department has spent on (a) advertising and (b) marketing in each of the last three years.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
We are unable to separate advertising and marketing spend. Total spend with our media buying agency Omnigov and TMP for the last three financial years is as follows:
22/23 | 23/24 | 24/25 |
£3,120,675 | £12,609,151 | £8,975,058 |
The Ministry of Justice advertising spend is published yearly within our Annual Report and Accounts. Attached are the reports that cover the three previous financial years.
2022/23 – Annual Report and Accounts
2023/24 – Annual Report and Accounts
2024/25 – Annual Report and Accounts
The Ministry of Justice uses advertising to support the Department in delivering its key priorities. These priorities include campaigns that ensure victims of crime are aware of, and able to access the support services available to them, as well as our recruitment campaigns that support filling our operationally critical front line roles in the Prison and Probation Service, and Magistrates roles.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when his Department plans to respond to the correspondence from the hon. Member for Newton Abbot sent on the 27 of November 2025 with case ref MW04041.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
As the majority of the issues raised do not fall under the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice, in line with Cabinet Office guidance, the correspondence was transferred out of the Department and accepted by the Home Office.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2026 to Question 101467 on Men, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that the terms and reference, objectives and conclusions of the planned Men and Boys Summit feed into wider policy work about men, including the implementation of the Men's Health Strategy.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Prime Minister has tasked the Deputy Prime Minister and myself, the Minister for Victims and Violence Against Women and Girls, with leading the Government’s efforts to tackle the challenges faced by men and boys. This work is in development, but we will of course ensure that the Men and Boys Summit and its outcomes align with existing strategies and activity across Government, including the Men’s Health Strategy. We will keep Cabinet colleagues updated and provide further detail in due course.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Urgent Question HMP Leyhill: Offender Abscondments, how many of the 57 prisoner abscondments that occurred in 2025 remained at large as of 1 January 2026.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
There were 57 absconds in the year ending March 2025. Data on absconds is published annually in the HMPPS Annual Digest: HMPPS Annual Digest 2024 to 2025 - GOV.UK. This only includes a 30-day reference point for whether prisoners remained at large. Data for April 2025 to March 2026 will be published in July 2026 as part of the next HMPPS Annual Digest.
Public protection is our top priority. When a prisoner absconds, police are immediately notified and are responsible for locating the offender. The majority of absconders are quickly recaptured and returned to custody.
Those who abscond face serious consequences, including being returned to closed prison conditions where they may serve up to two additional years on conviction. Prisoners subject to parole decisions will likely face longer before they are released.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners have been released in error from HM Prison Peterborough since July 2024.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Releases in error have been increasing for several years and are another symptom of the prison system crisis inherited by this Government. On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.
Totals for releases in error, including a breakdown by releasing prison (or Prisoner Escort Custody Services), are published each July in the HMPPS Annual Digest, available via HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab), and provide data up to March 2025.
The Government is determined to fix the issue of mistaken releases and ensure the public is properly protected.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners have been released in error from North Sea Camp Prison since July 2024.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Releases in error have been increasing for several years and are another symptom of the prison system crisis inherited by this Government. On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.
Totals for releases in error, including a breakdown by releasing prison (or Prisoner Escort Custody Services), are published each July in the HMPPS Annual Digest, available via HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab), and provide data up to March 2025.
The Government is determined to fix the issue of mistaken releases and ensure the public is properly protected.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners have been released in error from HM Prison Lincoln since July 2024.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Releases in error have been increasing for several years and are another symptom of the prison system crisis inherited by this Government. On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.
Totals for releases in error, including a breakdown by releasing prison (or Prisoner Escort Custody Services), are published each July in the HMPPS Annual Digest, available via HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab), and provide data up to March 2025.
The Government is determined to fix the issue of mistaken releases and ensure the public is properly protected.