Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Timpson on 16 December 2024 (HL3055), what recent assessment they have made of the value and performance of current prison maintenance service providers.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The value and performance of the Department’s private-sector service providers are subject to ongoing contract management, and current performance is in line with expected parameters.
As contracts approach expiry, assessments are conducted to inform decisions about future services. A 2023 assessment in partnership with the Cabinet Office determined that a privatised solution was the preferred option for future prison maintenance services. These contracts will be competitively tendered.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Timpson on 16 December 2024 (HL3055), what is their timescale for tendering new contracts for prison maintenance service providers.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government is currently running a competitive tender process that aims to award new contracts for the provision of maintenance services for prisons by December 2025.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Independent Monitoring Boards The impact of a crumbling prison estate on prisoners published in November, what plans they have (1) to consider the potential merits of returning prison maintenance to the public sector, and (2) to review the value of privatised services within the remit of the Ministry of Justice.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government has a programme of work underway that will put in place new contracts for the provision of maintenance services for prison, these will be competitively tendered.
The value and performance of the Department’s private-sector service providers is reviewed through routine contract and performance management and, in addition, as contracts are approaching expiry so decisions about whether to continue to outsource services can be taken.