Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2025 to Question 36625 on Prison Accommodation, when she expects places to become available through the small house blocks programme.

As outlined in the recently published 10-Year Prison Capacity Strategy, this Government is committed to delivering 14,000 prison places the previous Government failed to get built. These places will be delivered through the expansion and refurbishment of the existing estate, including Small Secure Houseblocks, as well as the construction of four new prisons, including the recently opened HMP Millsike.

As set out in the NAO Report, we expect places to become available through the Small Secure Houseblocks programme from 2027.