Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance his Department issues on the categorisation and management of prisoners who have been (a) charged with and (b) convicted of (i) terror-related and (ii) national security-related offences.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Terrorism and national security-related offences vary considerably.
Risk assessments are carried out to determine the appropriate categorisation of each prisoner. Where an individual is serving a determinate custodial sentence for a terrorist or terrorist connected offence, their categorisation risk assessment must be informed by the Regional Counter Terrorism Team. Any individuals serving a sentence for an offence of this nature are deemed as unsuitable for the open estate unless there are exceptional circumstances.
There is a range of guidance on managing prisoners charged with or convicted of terror related offences in custody. There is a multi-agency, end-to-end case management process, which includes regular risk assessments. Much of the specific guidance is operationally sensitive and disclosing it would undermine national security efforts and the maintenance of good order in prisons.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions prisoners who were granted temporary release on compassionate grounds failed to return to prison on the date they were required to do so in each of the last five years.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The table below shows the number of prisoners that failed to return to English and Welsh prisons from temporary release on compassionate grounds in each of the last five years.
Number of prisoners that failed to return from temporary release1,2,3 on compassionate release4 in England and Wales, 2018-19 to 2022-23 | |
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Year | Number of failures to return5 |
2018-19 | 2 |
2019-20 | 5 |
2020-21 | 4 |
2021-22 | 4 |
2022-23 | 3 |
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(1) Figures can include incidents within the youth estate, but exclude incidents at Medway STC | |
(2) A temporary release failure after a release on temporary licence (ROTL) occurs when a prisoner fails to adhere to any condition written into the licence that permits their temporary release. Such conditions include the date and time by which the prisoner is required to return to the prison and may also place restrictions on where the prisoner may go and whom they may visit during the period of release, etc. | |
(3) Failure to return after release on temporary licence is the subset of the above where an offender has not returned to the establishment by midnight on the date of return given in the licence. | |
(4) Figures for compassionate release include where the type of temporary release was either 'funeral/visiting dying relative', 'medical treatment' (special purpose medical only) or 'other compassionate release' | |
(5) The figures include all failures to return, not only those where failure to return is the most serious type of failure | |
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Data Sources and Quality | |
These figures have been drawn from the HMPPS Incident Reporting System. Care is taken when processing and analysing returns but the detail is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. Although shown to the last case, the figures may not be accurate to that level. | |
The Prison Rules in England and Wales provide that a prisoner may be allowed to leave prison for short periods on temporary licence (ROTL). ROTL under special purpose licence (SPL) is permitted for compelling compassionate reasons not directly linked to resettlement; for example, to allow the prisoner to attend medical appointments.
Public protection is our priority. All offenders must meet strict criteria and pass a full risk assessment, involving all relevant agencies, before being considered for release on temporary licence (ROTL).
By providing opportunities to work, learn and build family ties, temporary release from prison helps ensure offenders don't return to crime when they leave prison. Evidence shows the vast majority abide by their temporary release conditions, with the compliance rate standing at well over 99%. In 2022-23, for example, there were 7,165 temporary releases for compassionate reasons and only 3 failures to return. Non-compliance is, and will continue to be, dealt with robustly.
Justice matters in Northern Ireland are devolved.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many individuals on remand for terror-related charges are held in Category B prisons as of 8 September 2023.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Information on the number of persons in custody for terrorism-connected offences are routinely published on gov.uk and include a total figure for those who have been convicted and those being held on remand. The latest figures show that as at 31 March 2023, there were 232 persons in custody for terrorism-connected offences in Great Britain. This and future bulletins can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000-quarterly-update-to-march-2023.
Given the sensitive nature of the information, we do not publish any further breakdowns, or disclose operational detail (e.g., the categorisation and location of terrorist offenders) which may lead to the identification of individuals or undermine our national security efforts.
All prisoners are categorised under the Security Categorisation Policy Framework. Those whose offences meet the threshold for consideration for Category A are then referred to the national Category A team in HMPPS and assessed against that policy. Generally, remand prisoners are held in Category B reception prisons which are designed to serve their local courts. In each case, risk assessments are carried out to determine the appropriateness of the specific placement of each prisoner. The risk assessment looks at a range of factors, not just what offence on which someone has been charged.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of reducing the pension age of prison officers to 60.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The pension age in all public sector pension schemes is set under legislation by HM Treasury and the merits of any review in aspects of the pension scheme, including pension age, would be for them to consider. I am committed to listening to and working with officers, staff and trade unions and I continue to meet with the Prison Officer’s Association and other unions to discuss a range of issues, including pensions. We highly value our hardworking prison officers and take very seriously the safety of all staff working within prisons, whatever their age. The Ministry of Justice continues to review and roll out new safety equipment and provide new skills to prison officers to deal with challenging situations and reduce the risk of assault.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reported findings of the study commissioned by the Ministry of Justice, due to be published later this year, that male sexual offenders were twice as likely to claim to be transgender in order to access women’s prison units compared with men jailed for other types of offences.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice and His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service take the allocation of transgender women in custody very seriously. The study in question concerns the lived experience of transgender women in two men's prisons. None of the participants stated that their motivation was to access the women’s estate, and the preliminary findings of the research did not suggest that any of the participants were motivated by this.
Most transgender women in custody do not request a move to the women’s estate, and of those that do, most are not granted a move. As a result, well over 90% of transgender women in custody are held in the men’s estate.
In February of this year, we strengthened our policy so no transgender woman who has been convicted of a sexual or violent offence, and/or who retains birth genitalia, can be held in the general women’s estate. Exemptions to this rule can only be considered for the most truly exceptional of cases, and each case must be risk assessed by a multidisciplinary panel of experts and signed off by a minister before the individual can be held in the women’s estate.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) algorithmic and (b) other automated decision making systems his Department uses; and for what purposes.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice is still at the early stages of assessing where the uses of algorithmic models and automated decision-making tools might help drive greater efficiency and deliver maximum value for the taxpayer, as part of the Government’s digital transformation journey.
Work done to date has primarily been around the use of Actuarial Risk Assessment Instruments (ARAIs) in HM Prisons & Probation Service to assess the risks posed by, and needs of, an offender by combining actuarial methods of prediction with structured professional judgement.
The Ministry of Justice recognises that the use of AI in the justice system raises important ethical considerations, such as bias in the data used to train algorithms and the potential for automated decision-making to perpetuate existing inequalities. Therefore, any implementation of AI in the UK Ministry of Justice must be done carefully and transparently, with appropriate safeguards in place.
Any use of automated decision making will be done in compliance with provisions in GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, including the right of individuals to request a new decision is made that is not based solely on automated processing.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what work is being done in prisons to identify victims of Foetal Alcohol Syndrome; and what steps they are taking to introduce appropriate management and treatment regimes for those prisoners identified.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
All people in prison receive an early health assessment through a reception screening process. Every person receives a first and second stage health assessment, which incorporates a mental health screening in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines. This screening includes questions and actions relating to their risk of self-harm and/or suicide, learning disabilities and neurodevelopmental disorders.
For women who are pregnant and in prison, a full health assessment is undertaken. Any risks, such as alcohol dependency which could lead to foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), should be monitored and managed by the healthcare team, including midwife support. Currently there is no specific treatment for FASD, but where a baby is at risk of FASD, this will form part of the birth plan with the hospital.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of the potential (a) impact of the prison officer retirement age on safety in prisons and (b) merits of aligning the retirement age of prison officers with police officers.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
We highly value our hardworking prison officers and take very seriously the safety of all staff working within prisons, whatever their age. The Ministry continues to review and roll out new safety equipment and provide new skills to prison officers to deal with challenging situations and reduce the risk of assault.
The pension age in all public sector pension schemes is set under legislation by HM Treasury and the merits of any review in pension age would be for them to consider. I am committed to listening to and working with officers, staff and trade unions on a range of issues.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of sex offending treatment programmes on reoffending rates.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
A number of studies have been published that relate to HMPPS Offending Behaviour Programmes. The following is a list of studies published within the last 6 months that are related to those programmes designed to address reoffending in those persons convicted of sexual offences:
Participation statistics detailing the total number of programme starts and completions in a given year can be found on the .gov website. The latest statistics for delivery in Prisons can be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1108451/Education_Publication_202122.xlsx. The latest statistics for Probation can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-national-offender-management-service-digest-2016-to-2017.
Kaizen does not include or exclude potential participants based on offence categories. For people convicted of sexual offences, Kaizen includes those who are assessed as presenting with a high or very high risk of recidivism as assessed by the OASys Sexual Reoffending Predictor (OSP/C). The OSP tool predicts the likelihood of proven reoffending for a sexual and / or sexually motivated contact offence based on someone’s history of contact and noncontact sexual offending against adults and children.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of equipping prison staff with PAVA incapacitant spray on the (a) principle of explain or reform and (b) public sector equality duty.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
PAVA is intended to protect staff and prisoners in very serious assaults. Safe implementation of PAVA use is accompanied by clear and explicit guidance ensuring staff are confident as to when PAVA spray should be used. Staff can use the PAVA spray where there is serious violence or an imminent or perceived risk of it, and there is an immediate need to create a safe and protective environment.
During the pilot in 4 prisons in 2018 an Equality Impact Assessment was produced in line with HMPPS’s public sector equality duty. The national rollout of PAVA will be evaluated, the scope of which has been expanded to look at Use of Force as a whole to provide insight and learning and inform our practice. We are taking steps to better understand potential causes of disproportionality and identify appropriate actions to address them, applying the explain or reform principle where appropriate.