Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between John Penrose and Alex Chalk

Tuesday 14th September 2021 Commons Chamber

[John Penrose (Weston-super-Mare) (Con)]

T2. Drug use in our prisons lines the pockets of organised criminals and smuggling gangs, puts prison staff at risk of pressure from those same gangs and makes the already difficult job of prison rehabilitation far harder. How long do Ministers expect it to be before British prisons become practically drug free?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Alex Chalk)]

My hon. Friend raises a critical point, and we agree, which is why we have invested £100 million in gate security to ensure, for example, that body scanners can be installed to allow concealed items to be detected, that there is money for counter-corruption, and that rehabilitation and treatment can take place in jail. A time when our jails are completely drug free is something that we aspire to, and we are making important progress.