Imprisonment for Public Protection Prisoners

Debate between Baroness Hyde of Bemerton and Lord Timpson

Monday 6th July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

It was important two years ago to get the IPP prisoners in the right prison so that they could get the support they needed. We have gone from the 70% range to now 95% of IPP prisoners being in the right prison, which means that they can get the right support. Again, it comes back to the question: do we have prisons that are working well and do we have the right support teams around those individuals? I am seeing that regularly. When I go around prisons, I am seeing things getting better, but we still need to do more. We also need to do more to support individuals who are neurodiverse IPP prisoners. The autistic wings that we are developing are a really positive step forward.

[Baroness Hyde of Bemerton (Lab)]

My Lords, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman pointed to IPPs as a contributory factor in prisoner suicides. Indeed, the Minister of Justice’s own figures declare that there have been 92 self-inflicted deaths over the last 20 years since the introduction of the sentence—I can cite figures that suggest there have now been 96. What are we doing to reduce distress and keep people safe in our prisons, so that they may one day have the prospect of being safely released rather than dying by their own hand while in the care of the state?

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

It is very important that we safely release people and that they are safe when they are in our care. That is especially so for IPP prisoners—as well as their families who are also trying to support them. Self-harm for both men and women is down in our prisons. The number of deaths up to March 2026 was also down, by 12%. Even so, these are people—and people who we need to help. We need to make sure that we have that wraparound support for them. They are often people who are unwell and, whether they are in secure hospital or not, they need our support.

Prisoner Early Release

Debate between Baroness Hyde of Bemerton and Lord Timpson

Wednesday 1st July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

The noble Lord is right to raise the point about prison building, because we have to keep building these prisons. There is a role for them but there is also a role for technology. I have been keen on pushing technology in all parts of the justice system. I am pleased that we have £82 million going into the justice ID project, for example, and there is a load of AI work going on. In fact, if you walk into the Ministry of Justice and see someone who looks about 19 in jeans and a T-shirt, they are probably one of our amazing AI team, who are making a very big difference.

But it is very important that victims are notified as soon as we know. We work closely with those who sign up for the victim liaison scheme. We have the highest ever amount being invested in victim support services, over half a billion pounds, because we want to work with victims to make sure that they get transparency and all the support—for example, making sure that the exclusion zone is right, and explaining what the electronic monitoring provisions will be. It is important that we work together in the interests of victims, and that we keep investing in technology to improve accuracy and improve speed.

[Baroness Hyde of Bemerton (Lab)]

My Lords, having previously worked with people being released from prison and having helped people resettle in the community, I know how crucial the right support is after release to prevent reoffending and to prevent further victims. In light of this, is my noble friend the Minister confident that our Probation Service, which was so appallingly treated by the party opposite when they were in government, is now strong enough to cope?

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend for that question. Probation has had a very difficult time, but I am pleased to tell noble Lords that 90% of our probation regions are now improving, ahead of last year. I am doing a series of roadshows at the moment, going around the country speaking to probation staff—in fact, I will be in Bristol tomorrow—talking about the £700 million of extra investment we are putting into probation. There are extra staff—in fact, we have recruited more staff than we expected and more than ever before, and we are investing in technology and more housing too. While probation has had a difficult time, we are seeing green shoots across the whole of the Probation Service, and the support we are giving it through extra stability, extra recruitment and extra tech will mean that it can get back to the levels of service it was delivering many years ago.