Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reported findings of the study commissioned by the Ministry of Justice, due to be published later this year, that male sexual offenders were twice as likely to claim to be transgender in order to access women’s prison units compared with men jailed for other types of offences.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice and His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service take the allocation of transgender women in custody very seriously. The study in question concerns the lived experience of transgender women in two men's prisons. None of the participants stated that their motivation was to access the women’s estate, and the preliminary findings of the research did not suggest that any of the participants were motivated by this.
Most transgender women in custody do not request a move to the women’s estate, and of those that do, most are not granted a move. As a result, well over 90% of transgender women in custody are held in the men’s estate.
In February of this year, we strengthened our policy so no transgender woman who has been convicted of a sexual or violent offence, and/or who retains birth genitalia, can be held in the general women’s estate. Exemptions to this rule can only be considered for the most truly exceptional of cases, and each case must be risk assessed by a multidisciplinary panel of experts and signed off by a minister before the individual can be held in the women’s estate.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the reported findings of the study commissioned by the Ministry of Justice, due to be published later this year, what steps they are taking to prevent male offenders from seeking moves to the female prison estate due to faking their claims to be female.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice and His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service take the allocation of transgender women in custody very seriously. The study in question concerns the lived experience of transgender women in two men's prisons. None of the participants stated that their motivation was to access the women’s estate, and the preliminary findings of the research did not suggest that any of the participants were motivated by this.
Most transgender women in custody do not request a move to the women’s estate, and of those that do, most are not granted a move. As a result, well over 90% of transgender women in custody are held in the men’s estate.
In February of this year, we strengthened our policy so no transgender woman who has been convicted of a sexual or violent offence, and/or who retains birth genitalia, can be held in the general women’s estate. Exemptions to this rule can only be considered for the most truly exceptional of cases, and each case must be risk assessed by a multidisciplinary panel of experts and signed off by a minister before the individual can be held in the women’s estate.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government which protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010 the Ministry of Justice routinely (1) collects, and (2) publishes data on, in respect of prisoners.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The nine protected characteristics are as follows:
The data for age; gender reassignment; being pregnant or on maternity leave; race including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin; religion or belief; sex and sexual orientation is collected and published regularly.
The data for disability and being married or in a civil partnership is collected but not published.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that the courts service record the gender of a person convicted of a sexual assault as “male” if they possess male genitalia, regardless of their preferred gender identity.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Courts are required by the Courts Act 2003 and Criminal Procedure Rules to ask defendants to provide name, date of birth and nationality (the latter now only after sentence and in circumstances specified by the relevant rule). If and once an individual is remanded or sentenced into prison custody, HM Prison Service records their legal gender. Where the individual’s self-identified gender differs, this is also recorded, whilst making clear on the record that this is not their legally recognised gender.
There are currently no plans to alter these procedures.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many women in prison were sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1983 in each of the last five years.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Under sections 47/49 and 48/49 of the Mental Health Act 1983, the Secretary of State may authorise by warrant the transfer of female prisoners to a secure hospital, where he is satisfied that the criteria for detention are met.
The number of women prisoners transferred to hospital in each of the last five years are:
2021 – 184
2020 - 181
2019 - 213
2018 - 192
2017 – 180
The data for 2022 are not currently available, they are due for publication later this year.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bellamy on 7 December (HL3687) concerning guidance issued by a staff network in the HM Prison and Probation Service, whether that guidance has now been withdrawn; and what steps they are taking to ensure guidance is not issued which does not comply with departmental policies and legal responsibilities.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The document in question was produced by a staff network. It was not Government guidance. The content was not cleared by the Ministry of Justice, does not reflect departmental policy and should not have been shared. It will not be further disseminated.
His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) is reviewing its Employee Networks Protocol. This review will strengthen the process for ensuring that all information and materials communicated comply with our policies and legal responsibilities. This will include a review of sign-off procedures for nationally distributed employee network communications. HMPPS will also provide further communications training for its network leads. We remain committed to promoting diversity and awareness and maintaining robust professional standards.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government which minister, if any, was responsible for approving the guidance entitled Recognising transphobic coded language which the HM Prison and Probation Service diversity and inclusion team was reported to have sent to staff employed by the Ministry of Justice.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The guidebook was not approved by ministers and was published by a staff network, rather than as a corporate HM Prison and Probation Service document.
To prevent this happening again, the Ministry of Justice is reviewing the rules around communications to staff from network groups, to ensure that all information and materials comply with our policies and legal responsibilities.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many male prisoners who are transitioning to female, or who have a gender recognition certificate, are incarcerated in prison units holding female biological sex inmates; and what proportion of those prisoners have retained their full male genitalia.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) record the legal (rather than biological) gender of prisoners. For transgender prisoners with gender recognition certificates (GRCs), this is in line with the Gender Recognition Act 2004. Where required for statistical purposes, data on the characteristic of gender reassignment is obtained via a separate matching exercise, using information from the annual collection of data on transgender prisoners.
At the time of HMPPS’ latest Offender Equalities Report (conducted on 31st March 2019), of 129 transgender prisoners in the men’s prison estate, there were none who identified as male, although ten individuals did not specify their gender identity during the data exercise.
92% of transgender women (those who were of male sex at birth and now identify as women) were held in the men’s estate. There were 11 transgender prisoners in the female estate who identified as female (out of 34 transgender prisoners in total). Because of the way gender identity data was previously collected, it is important to note that the above figures may also include those who identified in other ways, such as those who are non-binary. This data does not include prisoners with gender recognition certificates. HMPPS continue to refine the scope and quality of data relating to gender identity.
Transgender prisoners are managed on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with ‘The Care and Management of Individuals who are Transgender’ policy framework. All risks (both to and from the prisoner) are thoroughly considered, including anatomy where appropriate.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many female prisoners who are transitioning to male, or who have a gender recognition certificate, are incarcerated in prison units holding male biological sex inmates.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) record the legal (rather than biological) gender of prisoners. For transgender prisoners with gender recognition certificates (GRCs), this is in line with the Gender Recognition Act 2004. Where required for statistical purposes, data on the characteristic of gender reassignment is obtained via a separate matching exercise, using information from the annual collection of data on transgender prisoners.
At the time of HMPPS’ latest Offender Equalities Report (conducted on 31st March 2019), of 129 transgender prisoners in the men’s prison estate, there were none who identified as male, although ten individuals did not specify their gender identity during the data exercise.
92% of transgender women (those who were of male sex at birth and now identify as women) were held in the men’s estate. There were 11 transgender prisoners in the female estate who identified as female (out of 34 transgender prisoners in total). Because of the way gender identity data was previously collected, it is important to note that the above figures may also include those who identified in other ways, such as those who are non-binary. This data does not include prisoners with gender recognition certificates. HMPPS continue to refine the scope and quality of data relating to gender identity.
Transgender prisoners are managed on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with ‘The Care and Management of Individuals who are Transgender’ policy framework. All risks (both to and from the prisoner) are thoroughly considered, including anatomy where appropriate.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar on 21 July (HL1789), how many pregnancies have been reported in the male prison estate in each of the last five years; and whether they will provide a breakdown of the outcomes of any such pregnancies.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
Sex between prisoners is not permitted. Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service ensure the safety of all prisoners by managing prisoners on a case-by-case basis and consider any relevant risks (including risks to, or from, the prisoner, as well as the risk of self-harm).
The NHS England and NHS Improvement constitution mandates that all healthcare delivered within prisons must be equivalent to healthcare delivered in the community and the fact that a patient is a prisoner should not impair their access to any healthcare they require.
All secure and detained settings therefore ensure that prisoners have access to appropriate contraceptives, which are prescribed or made available as necessary. This applies to both the men’s and women’s estate and includes all prisoners .
There have been no recorded incidents of prisoners becoming pregnant in the male prison estate.