Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what was the cost to the public purse for providing translators for foreign national prisoners in each of the last five years.

It is not possible to provide the information in the form requested. The costs of translators and interpreters cannot be disaggregated based on the nationality of the individuals that require these services. In addition, the level of aggregation at which cost data are collected combines all areas of the Ministry of Justice, including prisons, probation and the courts. It is not possible, therefore to obtain the costs associated with providing translation services solely for foreign national offenders.