Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the report entitled Injustice? Towards a better understanding of health care access challenges for prisoners, published by Nuffield Trust on 21 October 2021, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies on reducing reoffending in England of the findings of that report.

We know that tackling the underlying causes of offending can be key in helping a person to turn their back on crime. This can mean accessing timely treatment or support for a substance misuse or mental health need.

To tackle reoffending on release, we fully recognise the need to support offenders to access the right treatment whilst they are in prison and to continue to do so once released.

As just one example, during COVID-19, telemedicine was successfully rolled out across the estate, illustrating how digital and technology can be used to facilitate healthcare assessments within prisons and enable timely access to the right services.