HMP Birmingham

Debate between Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston and Elizabeth Truss

Monday 19th December 2016 Commons Chamber

[Elizabeth Truss]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right that alongside the rise in the use of psychoactive substances we have seen a rise in the use of mobile phones in prisons. We have been working with the mobile phone companies on a technical solution, which is rolling out; we are starting to test it fully in three prisons. That will give us the means of preventing those crimes.

[Ms Gisela Stuart (Birmingham, Edgbaston) (Lab)]

May I press the Secretary of State further? When she received the report from the independent monitoring board, did she read it and take action, or do we have a situation in which we had the riots and then the warnings from the independent monitoring board, but nothing happened in between?

[Elizabeth Truss]

We read the reports of the independent monitoring board and take action. We read that report. The prisons Minister and I are in constant touch with governors on these specific issues.