Prisoner Escapes

(asked on 16th October 2023) - View Source

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have absconded from prisons since 1 January 2023, broken down by the offence for which they were imprisoned.


Answered by
Damian Hinds Portrait
Damian Hinds
Minister of State (Education)
This question was answered on 24th October 2023

The data requested is published via the following link on a financial year basis, the latest year was 2022-23: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/hmpps-annual-digest-april-2022-to-march-2023. The data for the remainder of 2023 will be published in July 2024.

Public protection is our top priority. When a prisoner absconds, police are immediately notified and are responsible for locating the offender. The majority of absconders are quickly recaptured and returned to custody.

The number of absconds in 2022-23 was 34% lower than the previous year and 77% lower than in 2009-2010.

Those who abscond face serious consequences, including being returned to closed prison conditions where they may serve up to two additional years on conviction. Prisoners subject to parole decisions will likely face longer before they are released.

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