Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2021 to Question 19709, Prisoners: Gender Recognition, what steps he is taking to ensure that the review will include an assessment of the compliance of policy with the rights of female prisoners under Article 3 of the Human Rights Act not to be subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and Her Majesty's Prison and Probation Service operational policy framework 'The Care and Management of Individuals who are Transgender' was published in 2019. A routine review of the implementation of this framework is underway. The stakeholders to be consulted as part of this review will be finalised in due course and will include a range of internal and external stakeholders.

The Government Legal Department advises the MoJ on policy and operational matters. Naturally, MoJ received full legal advice in the formulation of this policy framework and will do so, where appropriate, throughout the review to ensure that all people in prison and on probation are managed safely with their rights properly respected, and in accordance with the law.