Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisons have reported inadequate supplies of personal protective equipment during the covid-19 outbreak.

The supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) required by the prison service is kept under regular review by the department, making sure that there is sufficient stock to be responsive to changing local contexts. There is currently adequate stock and forward supply of PPE, in accordance with public health advice.

We have stock in the hundreds of thousands for aprons, coveralls, eye protection, pairs of gloves, respirator masks and fluid-resistant surgical masks, as well as hand sanitiser. However, we are making continued preparations and keeping demand for PPE under regular review as we move into the next phase of managing this outbreak.