Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of prisoners housed in Wales were offenders with a fixed home address in England in (a) September 2023 and (b) each of the last three years.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
Please see the tables attached. Please note that where a given number is 5 or fewer, it has been redacted to prevent the release information that could possibly to lead to identification of the individuals concerned.
It is not possible to infer from an address in Wales that an individual considers themselves Welsh/English. HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) cannot identify English and Welsh prisoners. Someone with an address, for example in London, may consider themselves to be Welsh, while someone with an address in Wales may not. UK nationals have a nationality of British. Therefore the data shown are not necessarily representative of those who identify as English or Welsh. The results are sorted by origin address (home address on reception into custody) and not nationality. English, Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish are not captured on our database as separate nationalities.
HMPPS is committed to ensuring, where practicable and appropriate, that prisoners are accommodated as close as possible to their resettlement communities and families. Whilst this is a priority, it is not always possible due to a variety of factors including wider population pressures, or where prisoners have specific sentence planning needs which can only be met at certain establishments.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people received a custodial sentence for assaulting (a) an emergency worker and (b) a police officer in the course of their duties in each year since 2019.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 created an aggravated offence of common assault or battery when committed against an emergency worker acting in the exercise of their functions as an emergency worker, including a police constable. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 increased the maximum penalty from 12 months to 2 years’ imprisonment for any offence committed on or after 28 June 2022.
The Police Act 1996 includes an offence of assault of a constable in the execution of his duty, with a maximum penalty of 6 months imprisonment. This offence remains on the statute book as it has broader application than the assaults on emergency workers offence and includes the wilful obstruction of a constable, or the assault of a person assisting a constable. However, there may be circumstances in which this offence remains to be used for an assault on a constable.
The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the number of offenders sentenced and the average custodial sentence length for both offences in the Outcomes by Offence data tool: December 2022, using the following HO codes:
While improving our data processing in 2022, a data mapping issue was discovered in the Courts Proceedings Database whereby an estimated 1,301 convictions (227 in 2019, 530 in 2020 and 544 in 2021) for the offence ‘00873 – Common assault or battery of an emergency worker’ were not correctly mapped to this offence at Crown Court, therefore were not presented in the published data. We are exploring ways to add these convictions to the Outcomes by Offence data tool in future publications. This mapping was corrected in data for 2022 and therefore all data going forward will present correct figures.
There are also several other assault offences which may be charged depending on the level of harm caused including actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm, and grievous bodily harm with intent. These are not specific to emergency workers or police officers. However, the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 created a statutory aggravating factor where such offences are committed against an emergency worker
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful claims to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority have been made by serving police officers injured during the course of their duties in each year since 2019.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
The GB-wide Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (the Scheme) provides state-funded compensation to victims of violent crime who cannot pursue compensation or redress from other routes. Payments are available for physical or psychological injuries resulting directly from a crime of violence, as defined in Annex B of the Scheme.
Under the Scheme, any emergency worker who is assaulted while working, including serving police officers, will be considered as a direct victim of an intentional crime of violence in the same manner as any other victim group, with the same eligibility criteria being applied. An applicant who was not the direct victim of an intentional crime of violence may also be eligible for an award if they are injured whilst taking an exceptional and justified risk in the course of limiting or preventing a crime under paragraph 5 of the Scheme.
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), which operates the Scheme, does not hold data on how many (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful claims have been made by serving police officers injured during the course of their duties or the most common reason for claims by serving police officers injured during the course of their duties not succeeding. CICA does not request or record information relating to the occupation of applicants for criminal injuries compensation.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the most common reason is for claims to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority by a serving police officer injured during the course of their duties not succeeding.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
The GB-wide Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (the Scheme) provides state-funded compensation to victims of violent crime who cannot pursue compensation or redress from other routes. Payments are available for physical or psychological injuries resulting directly from a crime of violence, as defined in Annex B of the Scheme.
Under the Scheme, any emergency worker who is assaulted while working, including serving police officers, will be considered as a direct victim of an intentional crime of violence in the same manner as any other victim group, with the same eligibility criteria being applied. An applicant who was not the direct victim of an intentional crime of violence may also be eligible for an award if they are injured whilst taking an exceptional and justified risk in the course of limiting or preventing a crime under paragraph 5 of the Scheme.
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), which operates the Scheme, does not hold data on how many (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful claims have been made by serving police officers injured during the course of their duties or the most common reason for claims by serving police officers injured during the course of their duties not succeeding. CICA does not request or record information relating to the occupation of applicants for criminal injuries compensation.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average length of custodial sentence was for assaulting (a) an emergency worker, and (b) a police officer in the course of their duties in each year since 2019.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 created an aggravated offence of common assault or battery when committed against an emergency worker acting in the exercise of their functions as an emergency worker, including a police constable. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 increased the maximum penalty from 12 months to 2 years’ imprisonment for any offence committed on or after 28 June 2022.
The Police Act 1996 includes an offence of assault of a constable in the execution of his duty, with a maximum penalty of 6 months imprisonment. This offence remains on the statute book as it has broader application than the assaults on emergency workers offence and includes the wilful obstruction of a constable, or the assault of a person assisting a constable. However, there may be circumstances in which this offence remains to be used for an assault on a constable.
The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the number of offenders sentenced and the average custodial sentence length for both offences in the Outcomes by Offence data tool: December 2022, using the following HO codes:
While improving our data processing in 2022, a data mapping issue was discovered in the Courts Proceedings Database whereby an estimated 1,301 convictions (227 in 2019, 530 in 2020 and 544 in 2021) for the offence ‘00873 – Common assault or battery of an emergency worker’ were not correctly mapped to this offence at Crown Court, therefore were not presented in the published data. We are exploring ways to add these convictions to the Outcomes by Offence data tool in future publications. This mapping was corrected in data for 2022 and therefore all data going forward will present correct figures.
There are also several other assault offences which may be charged depending on the level of harm caused including actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm, and grievous bodily harm with intent. These are not specific to emergency workers or police officers. However, the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 created a statutory aggravating factor where such offences are committed against an emergency worker
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the prison population rate per 100,000 people is in Wales.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
The prison population per 100,000 people in Wales is 170 based on the population of prisons in Wales as at 31st March 2023, and the population of Wales as at 21st March 2021 from the latest census (noting footnotes 1-5 in attached Table 1).
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many probation staff vacancies there are in each Probation Delivery Unit in Wales.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
Staff vacancies as of May 2023 can be found on the attached table, broken down by grade and PDU.
Nationally, we are now investing an extra £155 million a year into the Probation Service compared to 2019 and recruiting record numbers of staff to deliver tougher supervision and keep the public safe. This includes the recruitment of an extra 4,039 trainee probation officers between 2020/21 and 2022/23.
When comparing staff in post to Target Staffing across all grades there are currently no vacancies in Wales. However, this is because the region currently has a large number of Trainee Probation Officers (199.5 FTE) who only spend part of their time carrying out casework at a Band 3 Probation Services Officer level. As a result, there are vacancies when looking at an individual grade level. These trainees have been recruited to fill Probation Officer vacancies but do not contribute towards Probation Officer casework until the point at which they qualify and carry out work at a Band 3 Probation Services Officer level.
The table presented only shows grades which currently have vacancies and does not take into account Trainee Probation Officer contribution towards ‘Band 3 - Probation Services Officer’ targets.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison officer vacancies there are in each pay band in each establishment in Wales.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
The MoJ holds required staffing levels which are subject to regular amendment and managed at a local and regional level. The MoJ does not present vacancy data for prisons due to variability in required staffing levels.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison leavers had an origin address in Wales by prison establishment in 2022.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
3,609 of the 46,804 prison leavers in 2022 had an identified origin address in Wales. The breakdown by establishment is shown in the table below.
The figures 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.
To prevent the disclosure of individual information, figures totalling five people or fewer have not been included (denoted by *).
Prison | Count |
Altcourse | 31 |
Ashfield | * |
Askham Grange | * |
Berwyn | 537 |
Birmingham | * |
Brinsford | * |
Bristol | 14 |
Brixton | * |
Bronzefield | * |
Buckley Hall | * |
Bullingdon | * |
Cardiff | 1046 |
Channings Wood | * |
Doncaster | * |
Dovegate | * |
Downview | * |
Drake Hall | 17 |
East Sutton Park | * |
Eastwood Park | 213 |
Elmley (Sheppey Cluster) | * |
Erlestoke | * |
Exeter | * |
Five Wells | * |
Ford | * |
Forest Bank | * |
Foston Hall | * |
Frankland | * |
Garth | * |
Grendon/Spring Hill | * |
Guys Marsh | * |
Hatfield | * |
Haverigg | 6 |
Hewell | * |
High Down | * |
Highpoint (North and South) | * |
Hindley | * |
Hull | * |
Humber | * |
Huntercombe | 12 |
Isis | * |
Isle of Wight | * |
Kirkham | 10 |
Lancaster Farms | * |
Leeds | * |
Leicester | * |
Leyhill | 20 |
Littlehey | * |
Liverpool | 8 |
Maidstone | * |
Manchester | * |
Moorland | * |
Mount | * |
Northumberland | * |
Norwich | * |
Nottingham | * |
Oakwood | 24 |
Parc | 559 |
Pentonville | * |
Portland | * |
Prescoed | 134 |
Preston | * |
Ranby | * |
Risley | 15 |
Rye Hill | * |
Send | * |
Stafford | 10 |
Standford Hill (Sheppey Cluster) | * |
Stocken | * |
Stoke Heath | 6 |
Styal | 42 |
Sudbury | * |
Swansea | 688 |
Swinfen Hall | * |
Thameside | * |
Thorn Cross | 12 |
Usk | 58 |
Wakefield | * |
Wandsworth | 6 |
Wayland | * |
Wetherby | * |
Whatton | 13 |
Winchester | * |
Wymott | * |
Total | 3609 |
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women with a fixed home address in Wales are housed in prison broken down by prison.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
The number of prisoners housed in each women's prison, who have a fixed home address in Wales, is provided in the table below. In accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation, we have not provided an exact figure where the true number falls between one and five and have instead used the substitute figure “less than 5". This data is correct as of 28th April 2023.
Prison | Number of prisoners with a fixed home address in Wales |
Downview | 7 |
Drake Hall | 12 |
Eastwood Park | 33 |
New Hall | Less than 5 |
Peterborough (Female) | Less than 5 |
Send | Less than 5 |
Styal | 11 |