Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the risks of holding 18 year-olds for longer in the youth estate.

On 1 September, my Rt Hon Friend the Lord Chancellor announced in a statement on criminal justice reform that, to help relieve some of the adult prison capacity challenges, a decision had been taken to hold some 18-year-olds for longer in the youth estate, on a careful case-by-case basis. This is an interim arrangement, subject to regular review, which we will look to end as soon as possible. We have not taken this decision lightly: we judge it to be a necessary part of the response to the prison capacity crisis which this Government inherited.

Retaining some 18-year-olds in the youth estate, on a case-by-case basis, is a longstanding practice.

The interim policy decision announced will be subject to several key safeguards. The proportion of 18-year-olds in the youth custody population must never exceed 25 per cent. In addition to the assessment of individual young people and of site safety, existing safeguarding, behaviour-management and risk-assessment arrangements will continue to apply. These will monitor any concerns about risks posed by or to an individual young person. Where an unmanageable risk to other young people, or to the stability of the establishment, is identified, an earlier transition to the adult estate will be arranged.

As regards the longer term, the Youth Custody Transformation Plan, which is planned for publication in the coming months, will include consideration of how we best support young people transitioning from the youth estate to adult prison.