Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce delays in the escorting of defendants to Court which can result in a trial being (a) deferred or (b) cancelled.

The HMPPS Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (PECS) Contract Management Team continues to work collaboratively with criminal justice system partners through Strategic Partnership Boards to review performance and agree strategies to drive and sustain improvements.

PECS provides quarterly reports to Ministers, detailing supplier performance against journey-time targets and the timeliness of prison vehicle turnaround.