Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to bring forward the parole hearings of prisoners imprisonment for public protection who have exceeded their minimum term in prison?

As at 30 September 2017, the population of prisoners serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences in prisons in England and Wales was 3,162. Of these prisoners, 2,718 have passed their minimum tariff period.These and other statistics specific to those serving indeterminate sentences are published quarterly by the Ministry of Justice here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/offender-management-statistics-quarterly

I remain committed to ensuring IPP prisoners are able to progress towards release as soon it is safe to do so after their tariff has expired. IPP prisoners are achieving release in high numbers. In the year 2016/17, 46% of IPP prisoners achieved a release decision from the Parole Board, with a further 24% securing a progressive move to open conditions. Less than a third of hearings resulted in a negative outcome.

A joint action plan is in place, co-owned by Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) and the Parole Board, with the specific aim of providing as many opportunities for IPP prisoners to progress to safe release as soon as possible. A key part of the action plan has been to ensure that the parole process runs as smoothly as possible so as to provide IPP prisoners with timely access to parole reviews. The Parole Board has effectively eliminated its backlog and is now listing more hearings than ever before.