Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the role and remit of the Office for Life Sciences.

Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Office for Life Sciences (OLS) is a joint unit between the Department of Health and Social Care, Department of Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department of Business and Trade. It exists to support the UK’s life sciences sector by championing research, innovation and technology, helping everyone live well for longer and kickstarting economic growth.

OLS is committed to renewing the UK’s leadership in life sciences – a cornerstone of the UK's success – deepening ties between the public, private and third sector to ensure growth across every region of the country. OLS has responsibility for the oversight of delivery of the Life Science Sector Plan, which was published in July 2025, as part of the Industrial Strategy and developed in tandem with the 10 Year Health Plan.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much money has been distributed through the Life Sciences Innovation Manufacturing Fund grants in each of the last five years and of this amount how much was allocated to (1) small, (2) medium and (3) large businesses.

Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund (2025-30) launched in October 2024 has so far committed a total of £6 million in grant awards, 100% going to small and medium (SME) companies with fewer than 250 employees. Between 2022 and 2024, £69 million in grant funding was awarded through predecessor schemes, of which £3 million (4%) was awarded to SMEs and £66 million (96%) to larger companies. The LSIMF 2025-2030 scheme remains open and its pipeline contains applications from across the sector, and from companies of different sizes.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect the second part of Lord Leveson's Independent Review of the Criminal Courts to be published.

Answered by Baroness Levitt - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

Part two of the Independent Review into Criminal Courts is considering how the criminal courts can operate as efficiently as possible, specifically looking at the efficiency and timeliness of processes. We expect to receive Sir Brian's report on court efficiency early next year.

We will consider his recommendations in full and will respond in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many prisoners serving (1) determinate, and (2) indeterminate, sentences were granted compassionate release from prison on the grounds of ill health in 2023 and 2024.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Secretary of State may release a serving prisoner at any point in the sentence if he is satisfied that exceptional circumstances exist which justify the prisoner’s release on compassionate grounds.

The following table shows the number of prisoners released early on compassionate grounds for reasons of ill health, in 2023 and 2024, broken down by sentence type.

1. The figures in these tables have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Public protection remains the priority and prisoners will be released early on compassionate grounds only if exceptional circumstances can be evidenced and if they are assessed to be safely manageable in the community.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) men, and (2) women, were detained in prisons as a place of safety in the last 12 months.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave to question HL12779 to Baroness Chakrabarti on 16 December 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) males and (2) females, aged (a) 15 to 17, (b) 18 to 20, (c) 21 to 24, (d) 25 to 29, (e) 30 to 39, (f) 40 to 49, (g) 50 to 59, (h) 60 to 69, (i) 70 to 79 and (j) 80 and over, are currently in prison, categorised by offence.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The answer to this question has been provided as an attachment alongside this response. Table 1 contains the number of male prisoners broken down by alleged/proven offence groups and age bands, as at 30 September 2025, England and Wales. Table 2 contains the number of female prisoners broken down by alleged/proven offence groups and age bands, as at 30 September 2025, England and Wales.

The figures presented are based on the total prison population and therefore include those held on remand, those sentenced and non-criminals.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many prisoners are (1) eligible for support, and (2) receiving support, under section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The eligibility criteria for Section 117 applies to those who have been discharged from hospital following detention under the Mental Health Act, including those who have been remitted to prison. This is to help meet their needs and reduce the risk of their mental health condition worsening, which could lead to another hospital admission. Where prisoners are remitted back to prison, their right to receive Section 117 aftercare should be dealt with in the same way as it would be in the community, apart from any provisions which do not apply in custodial settings, such as direct payments and choice of accommodation. We do not hold centralised data on the number of prisoners receiving support under Section 117.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many prisoners serving an Imprisonment for Public Protection sentence have been held for 15 years or more beyond their original tariff.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data in Offender Management Statistics Quarterly (OMSQ) on the number of unreleased prisoners serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences that are over tariff, broken down by time spent over tariff.

As of 30 September 2025, there were 233 IPP prisoners that were 15 years or more over their tariff. The latest data published can be found in Table 1.Q.18: prison-population-30-Sept-2025.ods

Data on the number of recalled IPP prisoners by tariff length are not collated centrally.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government on how many occasions pelargonic acid vanillylamide (PAVA) incapacitant spray has been (1) drawn, and (2) drawn and deployed in prisons in 2024 and 2025; and what was the (a) ethnicity, (b) religion, and (c) disability status of the prisoner involved in each case.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Data relating to the use of PAVA broken down by disability comes from internal management information that is under development. It is not quality assured and does not meet the standard required for publication.

The table below provides information on the use of PAVA broken down ethnicity and religion.

Please note that the 2025 figures represent data to 30 November this year. Figures include each time a prisoner is impacted by a PAVA incident. This means each time PAVA is drawn and used/drawn not used, multiple prisoners may be counted. In addition, the same prisoner may be counted more than once if involved in multiple incidents.

Figures provided have been drawn from HMPPS Management Information which has not passed through the quality assurance processes usually associated with official statistics published on gov.uk and may contain incomplete or, on rare occasions, inaccurate data.

Pelargonic acid vanillylamide incapacitant (PAVA) spray is made available to protect staff and prisoners in the event of serious violence, or where there is an imminent risk of serious violence. Clear guidance has been issued to staff, to ensure it is used only where appropriate. Our hardworking prison officers are brave public servants doing exceptionally difficult jobs, this Government will do everything we can to keep them safe.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many and what proportion of people arriving into custody were assessed for additional support due to neurodiversity in each prison and Young Offender Institution in England over each of the last two years.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

On 01 October 2025 we introduced a requirement and new tool for Governors to ensure all prisoners receive a screening for additional learning needs within 30 days of reception into custody. Young people entering the youth estate are screened within 10 days of arrival.

The new screening requirement built on an earlier process (since 2023) of carrying out an initial rapid screening for learning difficulties and/or disabilities and more in-depth screening which formed part of the initial education induction.

Data is collected and used locally, however, there is no routine centralised collection of validated data in relation to the numbers undertaking screening and assessment in either the adult estate or in Young Offender Institutions.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many people in prison or a Young Offender Institution self-describe their ethnicity as (1) black, (2) mixed-race, (3) Asian, and (4) white; and for each of these groups how many are aged (a) 15-17, (b) 18-20, (c) 21-24, (d) 25-29, (e) 30-39, (f) 40-49, (g) 50-59, (h) 60-69, and (i) 70 and over.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The answer to this question has been provided as an Excel document alongside this response.

The table provided was published as part of the Offender Management chapter of the 2024 ‘Ethnicity and the Criminal Justice System’ publication. (This series is published every other year.)

The figures presented are based on the total prison population and therefore include those held on remand, those sentenced and non-criminals.