Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to help prevent the criminalisation of children while in care.

The Government recognises the disproportionate number of care-experienced people among the custodial population in both the youth and adult estate and is taking steps to address this.

In November last year, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a review of the national protocol for reducing the criminalisation of this cohort. We intend to publish a strengthened protocol later this year. This will strengthen the guidance for agencies including the police, health services and local authorities.