Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 13 November to Question 111268, what guidance his Department issues to prisons on the promotion of (a) Holocaust Memorial Day, (b) Black History Month and (c) National Hate Crime Awareness Week.
Answered by Phillip Lee
Prisons are free to decide locally how they promote events such as Holocaust Memorial Day, Black History Month and National Hate Crime Awareness Week. National Prison Radio promotes national support for local initiatives, and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service also provides information to offenders and staff including via its staff networks.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department has taken to support prisons to participate in (a) Holocaust Memorial Day, (b) Black History Month and (c) National Hate Crime Awareness Week.
Answered by Phillip Lee
Prisons are free to decide locally how they participate in Holocaust Memorial Day, Black History Month and National Hate Crime Awareness Week. Such participation will reflect the needs of individual prisons in terms of their offender and staffing profiles. National Prison Radio promotes national support for local initiatives, and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service also provides information to prisons via its staff networks to support prison staff in their participation in local events.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that more prisoners obtain employment on release.
Answered by Andrew Selous - Second Church Estates Commissioner
Supporting offenders into meaningful employment is a vital aspect of the Government’s approach to rehabilitation. We already work with a wide range of employers in prison through One3One Solutions and engagement by Prison Governors. And we want Governors to do more so we are putting the tools to drive this change in the hands of those at the frontline who best know what works. We are keen to increase the number of employers who can provide valuable vocational work for offenders while in prison and who are able to offer them support in preparation for release and employment opportunities following their release. I regularly meet businesses across the country including at 2 successful roadshows at HMP Sudbury and HMP/YOI Drake hall. New businesses are now coming on board as a consequence. The Employers Forum for Reducing Reoffending brings together employers willing to employ offenders and we are working with the Department for Work and Pensions to increase the involvement of more businesses. The Prime Minister has announced changes to recruitment practises across the civil service to ensure that people are considered on their merits and not on their criminal conviction and we want to encourage more employers to do the same.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to remove foreign national offenders from prisons to their home countries.
Answered by Andrew Selous - Second Church Estates Commissioner
It is right that foreign criminals who break our laws are properly punished but this shouldn't be at the expense of the British taxpayer. This government has a longstanding policy to do everything possible to return foreign prisoners to their home country at the earliest opportunity. Since 2010, 29,000 foreign national offenders have been removed from the UK and the foreign national offender’s total population in our prisons is reducing, falling from 10,866 in December 2010 to 9,895 in December 2015.
As announced in the Prime Minister’s speech on 8 February, my officials have been working closely with the Home Office to introduce a legal requirement for defendants appearing in court to provide their name, date of birth and nationality. This will enable earlier identification of foreign national offenders and help with the removals process.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effects on children and families of the parental orders procedure following surrogacy arrangements.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Government has made no such assessment. Parental orders provide a mechanism to enable a couple who have entered into a surrogacy arrangement to become that child’s legal parents. There is no obligation to obtain a parental order but a couple who commission a surrogacy arrangement are advised and encouraged to do so in order to achieve a recognisable transfer of parenthood in the UK. In deciding whether to exercise its discretion and award a Parental order, the court has regard to all the facts of the case and the overriding importance of the welfare of the child throughout their life.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to give greater support to people with mental health vulnerabilities who come into contact with the criminal justice system.
Answered by Andrew Selous - Second Church Estates Commissioner
Liaison and Diversion services place clinical staff at police stations and courts to assess and identify offenders for a range of health problems, including mental health, and then make referrals to treatment and support services. Information about their health needs can be shared so that court proceedings, decisions and sentences can be tailored to meet needs. Where appropriate offenders can be diverted towards appropriate interventions.
In April 2014, services were launched in 10 trial areas, and extended in April 2015 to a further 15 areas. This brings current coverage to over half of England. We are also exploring how problem-solving courts can support people with complex needs. A working group has been established in partnership with the judiciary which will make recommendations in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence of self-harm and self-inflicted deaths among young people in custody.
Answered by Andrew Selous - Second Church Estates Commissioner
The safety and welfare of young people in custody is vital and we are clear that reducing the level of self-inflicted deaths is of utmost importance.
We have improved the assessment of young people’s risks and needs when they enter custody. We have also improved the specifications for Secure Training Centre and Young Offender Institutions (YOIs) to place an increased emphasis on the management of self-harm and suicide including ensuring the appropriate skills and training of staff are in place to meet the needs of young people.
In YOIs we have introduced new psychological services to better inform risk management and support those detained.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many defibrillators are provided in each building his Department manages.
Answered by Mike Penning
The information requested is not held centrally.