Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to respond to the correspondence of 10 December 2021 from the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South requesting a meeting with a constituent.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Government attaches great importance to the effective and timely handling of correspondence from MPs, either directly or on behalf of their constituents.
I apologise to the Hon. member for Houghton and Sunderland South for the delay in responding to her correspondence. I can confirm that a response was sent on Monday 21 February.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2021 to Question 30344 on Prisons: Ventilation, what budget has been made available for enforcement activities in respect of ventilation in prisons in each of the last ten years; what enforcement action has been taken in respect of ventilation in prisons in each of the last ten years; and when he last met (a) prison governors and (b) representatives of the Prison Officers’ Association to discuss ventilation in prisons.
Answered by Alex Chalk - Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
The Ministry of Justice is not an enforcing authority and does not engage in enforcement activity. We are not aware of any enforcement action against HMPPS in relation to ventilation.
While there is regular engagement with prison governors and representatives of the Prison Officers’ Association on issues relating to health and safety in prisons, there have been no meetings to discuss ventilation specifically.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the adequacy of ventilation in prisons and management of the risk of covid-19 infection, what guidance he has issued or plans to issue to prison governors on that matter; to what standards prison governors should plan and measure such ventilation; what enforcement activity he plans to undertake to ensure such guidance is followed; and whether he proposes to make funds available to improve standards of ventilation.
Answered by Alex Chalk - Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
Updated guidance “Ventilation in Prisons and Approved Premises during COVID-19 Operating Conditions Guidance (Version 2)” was issued to all prison governors in March 2021. MoJ Property Directorate, working with facilities management providers, is responsible for the management of the ventilation systems. They continuously monitor these systems and identify where any improvements may be needed which would normally be funded from within existing budgets.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of (a) psychological and (b) financial support available to the families of prisoners serving IPP sentences.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Families and significant relationships can play an important role in supporting both men and women in custody and on release and reducing reoffending.
Prisons commission a range of family support services based on the needs of their local populations and their families and significant others.
HMPPS fund the Prisoner's Families Helpline to provide information, advice and guidance to the families of all prisoners irrespective of sentence or offence type. This may include signposting to other services available from public and voluntary sector organisations.
In addition specific guidance is being developed by HMPPS for the families and significant others of IPP prisoners that will help them to understand some of the key processes involved in progression, and how they can help.
The Help with Prison Visits Scheme (formerly known as Assisted Prison Visits Scheme) operated by HMPPS Family Services can help provide financial assistance for close relative, partners or sole visitor to visit people in prison. Support is based on the eligibility of the applicant not the sentence or offence type of the person they are visiting.
Family initiatives and schemes are routinely monitored and reviewed.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the reduction in the number of magistrates in (a) England and Wales and (b) Northumbria in the last three years.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
In England and Wales, as workloads have reduced and efficiencies have been delivered, the number of magistrates has reduced from 25,155 on 1 April 2012 to 15,003 on 1 April 2018. The corresponding figures for Northumbria are, 901 on 1 April 2012 to 421 on 1 April 2018.
Information on the number of magistrates from 2015 to date can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/search?q=judicial+diversity+statistics+. Information regarding numbers on 1 April 2012 can be found at: https://www.judiciary.uk/publications/magistrates-in-post-2012/.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 24 July 2018 to Question 166155, to which budget headlines will the £825,000 of income for reinvestment in the Sunderland Magistrates’ court be allocated.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
The implementation planning underway will determine what the £825,000 of income for investment in the Sunderland Magistrates’ Court will be spent on. The appropriate budget allocation for these funds will be determined at the conclusion of this planning.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department plans to spend on upgrading Sunderland Magistrates Court.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
HMCTS is committed to investing in the court estate in the city of Sunderland and will spend over £5m during the next ten years on upgrading and maintaining the current magistrates’ court.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Courts of 6 July 2018 to the non. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South and the hon. Member for Sunderland Central, whether the £825,000 will be reinvested in Sunderland Magistrates’ Court as a result of the decision to relinquish land held on Farringdon Row.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
HMCTS has decided to relinquish the land at Farringdon Row which will provide £825,000 of income for reinvestment in the Sunderland Magistrates’ court.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the answer of 25 June to Question 155782 on Courts: Sunderland, what progress has been made by the HMCTS Property Board's deliberations on the future of the Sunderland court estate.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
I wrote to the Hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South on 10 July 2018 providing an update on the outcome of the deliberations of the Property Board.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the letter of 6 March 2018 from the Under-Secretary of State for Justice to the hon. Members for Houghton and Sunderland South and for Sunderland Central, what progress has been made on the future of the Sunderland court estate.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
HM Courts & Tribunals Service has completed the assessment and information gathering activities which were outlined in the letter I wrote to the Honourable Member on 6 March 2018. As stated in the letter, the HMCTS Property Board is now considering options for the court estate in Sunderland. I will write to the Honourable Member shortly to provide further information regarding the outcome of the Property Board deliberations.