Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the number and proportion of prisoners with addiction-related health issues who did not engage in treatment in prison in 2022.

The Ministry of Justice works closely with NHS England to ensure that all prisoners who need it have access to high-quality substance misuse treatment. All prisoners receive a comprehensive health screening within their first week to identify drug misuse and related health needs, and agree a plan for recovery-focused treatment. To support and encourage more prisoners to make progress in recovery, we are rolling out a range of interventions, including increasing the number of Incentivised Substance-Free Living wings, recruiting dedicated staff in prisons to focus on tackling drugs, and supporting prisoners to access community treatment pre-release.

The Ministry of Justice does not hold substance misuse healthcare data on prisoners, which is managed by the Department of Health and Social care through the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS).