Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the availability of illegal substances at HMP Berwyn.

HMP Berwyn has benefited from the £100 million investment in prisons security announced by the Government in August 2019, receiving one of the new X-ray body scanners that have been installed at 51 prisons across England and Wales. These have detected drugs and contraband that fuel crime in prisons, and which have resulted in over 4800 positive identifications nationally.

HMP Berwyn’s drug strategy practices were reviewed in March 2021 as part of an HMPPS Drugs Diagnostic Team visit to assess the current and changing threat level from illegal substances. A number of recommendations have been made to combat the threat as a result of the visit.

Threats particular to HMP Berwyn include paper impregnated with substances commonly known as Spice, the manufacturing of illicit brewed alcohol (IBA) and other substances, as well as access to illicit items.

Between March 2019 and February 2020 there were a total of 346 drug finds at HMP Berwyn. This represents 2% of the total drug finds in Public Sector Prisons at the time.