Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce levels of reoffending among people released on licence.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
This Government is committed to reducing reoffending by giving prison leavers, including those released early on licence, the tools they need to turn their backs on crime. To do that, we will increase prisoners’ access to purposeful activity, such as education, deliver pre-release plans for all those leaving custody and ensure that people leave prison with a job and the skills needed to lead law abiding lives.
We are determined to help ensure our hard-working probation staff can continue to deliver high-quality supervision, including to those released on licence, and focus their time on those cases which need most attention. We need to increase the size of the workforce and are committed to bringing in at least 1,000 new trainee probation officers across the 2024/25 financial year.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of the appropriacy of custodial sentences for pregnant women.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Sentencing in individual cases is a matter for our independent courts. The sentencing framework, maximum penalties and the Sentencing Council’s sentencing guidelines apply to all offenders.
Sentencing guidelines are clear that there are factors that sentencers should take into account to reflect personal mitigation, including pregnancy, or the impact on dependent relatives. Guidance makes clear that where an offender is on the cusp of custody, imprisonment should not be imposed where there would be an impact on dependents, that would make a custodial sentence disproportionate to achieving the aims of sentencing. However, in some circumstances, custody would be the only appropriate punishment for the most dangerous and violent offenders.
This Government has delivered on a manifesto commitment by launching an Independent Review of Sentencing, chaired by former Lord Chancellor, David Gauke. The Review will assess whether the sentencing framework appropriately considers the specific needs or vulnerabilities of women, including pregnant women. Additionally, we are establishing a Women’s Justice Board with a clear ambition to reduce the number of women in prison and to address their distinct needs within the Criminal Justice System.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to improve support for people being released from prison.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We are committed to ensuring pre-release plans are created for those leaving custody, to ensure their needs are identified early and individual robust plans are in place to address these.
We are working closely with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government and other Departments on the development of a new cross-government strategy to put us back on track to ending homelessness, as well as delivering our temporary accommodation service (CAS3), so all offenders leaving prison at risk of homelessness who are supervised by probation are offered up to 12 weeks of accommodation to provide a stable base on release.
We are also working with prisons to improve offenders’ access to purposeful activity, including learning, to improve prisoners’ reading, numeracy and vocational training so that more prisoners are prepared for work on release. In addition, we have launched regional Employment Councils, which for the first time will bring businesses together with probation and the Department of Work and Pensions to support offenders in the community.
To support prison leavers with a drug or alcohol need, over 50 Health and Justice Partnership Coordinators nationwide are improving links between prison, probation and treatment providers, and we have secure laptops to enable prisoners to meet with community treatment providers virtually, prior to release.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that people carrying out jury duty do not experience financial hardship.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Juries are a vital part of our criminal justice system and undertake an important civic duty. The support provided to jurors includes measures to assist those who may suffer financial hardship. People who are not paid by their employer whilst they are on jury service can claim a loss of earnings allowance from the court, and jurors can apply for a deferral or excusal based upon financial hardship.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to support those with criminal records to reintegrate back into appropriate work.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We know that employment reduces the chance of reoffending significantly, by up to nine percentage points for offenders released from custody. That is why we have committed to break the cycle of reoffending by better supporting prisons to link up with employers and the voluntary sector to get more people with convictions into work.
For those leaving custody, there are Employment Hubs in all resettlement prisons where prisoners can access job vacancies and support with applications. Prison Employment Leads support prisoners to get work ready and match them to jobs on release. The proportion of prison leavers in employment six months post-release more than doubled across the past three performance years, from 14% in 2020/21 to 31% in 2023/24.
Those on community sentences or under probation supervision on licence can access Jobcentre Plus support, and we are working with the Department of Work and Pensions to ensure that work coaches are equipped to give the right support to people with convictions, as set out in the Get Britain Working White Paper. HMPPS’ Creating Future Opportunities programme also works with those furthest from the labour market in the community to improve their employability and move into work. It has supported over 1,000 prison leavers into work in the year to March 2024.
For all people with convictions, including those not under probation supervision, the criminal records disclosure regime strikes a balance between rehabilitation and safeguarding the public. Where a conviction has become spent, it is right that the individual is treated as rehabilitated and can move on with their life by not needing to declare the conviction when applying for most jobs or insurance.