Oral Answers to Questions

Dave Robertson Excerpts

Tuesday 10th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Shabana Mahmood]

The right hon. Member will know that there has been a recent Law Commission report on marriage law more generally. The Government are going to consult on broader reform of marriage law, and we will certainly consider the issues that he has raised before setting out a public position.

[Dave Robertson (Lichfield) (Lab)]

T2. Many of my constituents work at HMP Swinfen Hall in Staffordshire, although the boundary changes took it out of my constituency recently. Many of the prison officers I speak to there are concerned about retention at the start of their careers, getting into more experienced roles and ensuring that such experience is retained. Can the Minister reassure me about the steps being taken to encourage retention of experienced members of staff?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Sir Nicholas Dakin)]

One of the very first actions of the Government was to accept the Prison Service pay review body’s independent recommendations in full, delivering a pay increase of 5% for prison officers. In addition, we monitor exit interview data and use it to help design interventions to improve retention.