Asked by: Pam Cox (Labour - Colchester)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisons and Young Offender Institutions have (a) an ID and Banking Administrator and (b) an Employment Lead currently in post.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Prison Employment Leads (PELs) and ID and Banking Administrators (IDBAs) were introduced to 93 prisons across the estate in 2022 and have been effective in supporting prisoners to prepare for their reintegration into the community since then. Whilst these roles are supported nationally, they are managed and recruited to locally, so numbers of vacancies are not held centrally.
Asked by: Pam Cox (Labour - Colchester)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners are participating in higher education courses.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
According to the Open University, as of 18 December 2025, there are 1,486 students who are currently in custody enrolled on Open University higher education programmes for the 2025/26 academic year, and a further 413 on licence in the community, totalling 1,899.
Additionally, some prisoners are taking level 4 courses, with 1,524 prisoners currently studying a course funded by the Prisoners’ Education Trust.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of his Department's progress towards its target of increasing prison capacity.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
This Government inherited a prison system in collapse. We have taken decisive action to put prison capacity on a sustainable footing and end the cycle of repeated crises.
We have committed to the largest expansion of the estate since the Victorians, investing £7 billion in building prison places between 2024/25 and 2029/30. We are on track to deliver 14,000 new prison places by 2031 with c. 2,900 delivered already under this Government.
On top of this, we have introduced landmark sentencing reforms to end our prisons crisis – and deliver punishment that cuts crime. On 2 September we introduced the Sentencing Bill to take forward most of the recommendations made by David Gauke’s Independent Sentencing Review, as well as the measures that go further to manage offenders in the community. The House of Lords committee stage was concluded on 3 December.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make it his policy to review the status of people held on remand in custody for more than six months to determine whether they should be considered for conditional release.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The decision to remand an individual in custody or to grant bail is solely a matter for the independent judiciary acting in accordance with the Bail Act 1976. With limited exceptions, the Bail Act creates a presumption in favour of bail for defendants involved in criminal proceedings. This recognises that a person should not be deprived of his/her liberty unless that is necessary for the protection of the public or the delivery of justice.
There is a well-established process that enables remanded prisoners to apply to the court for bail, and we have expanded the Bail Information Service over the last year to provide more support.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data his Department holds on the length of time spent in detention without trial by defendants charged under the Terrorism Act 2000 for (a) supporting or (b) being a member of Palestine Action.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
No-one is being detained under the Terrorism Act 2000 for supporting, or being a member of, Palestine Action.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, who is the Chief Risk Officer for national security risks relating to the work of their Department.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Secretaries of State and Accounting Officers are ultimately responsible for all risks a Department owns. Each risk in the National Risk Register (NRR) has a designated Risk Owner, working within the Lead Government Department which is responsible for designated risk areas.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data he holds on the reoffending rates of individuals convicted of offences relating to illegal entry into the UK.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Providing this would incur disproportionate costs.
More broadly the Government is tackling the root causes of reoffending by investing in a range of services which address offenders’ underlying criminogenic needs and support their rehabilitation journey. This includes education, employment, accommodation and access to substance misuse treatment.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to publish data on convictions and sentencing outcomes for immigration offences.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on prosecutions, convictions and sentencing at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool. This tool includes convictions and sentencing for immigration offences and can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the compatibility of early releases with the principles of justice.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
We must ensure that there are always sufficient prison places for dangerous offenders and those who pose a risk to the public. We are building 14,000 prison places and will have more prisoners by the time of the next election than the last. We take every possible step to mitigate risk, working in collaboration with partners across the Criminal Justice System. The introduction of the Sentencing Bill will bring an end to temporary early release measures and put the system back on a sustainable footing, ensuring sentences are served in a way that balances punishment, rehabilitation, and public safety.
We also recognise the importance of maintaining confidence in the justice system for victims and their families when designing these reforms and will continue to assess these impacts throughout implementation. Ministers and policy officials have been pleased to meet with victims’ stakeholders through a mix of individual meetings, roundtables and sector-wide engagement groups. We remain committed to continuing to engage with the victim sector to understand the impact of these changes.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the impact of early releases on (a) victims and (b) victims' families.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
We must ensure that there are always sufficient prison places for dangerous offenders and those who pose a risk to the public. We are building 14,000 prison places and will have more prisoners by the time of the next election than the last. We take every possible step to mitigate risk, working in collaboration with partners across the Criminal Justice System. The introduction of the Sentencing Bill will bring an end to temporary early release measures and put the system back on a sustainable footing, ensuring sentences are served in a way that balances punishment, rehabilitation, and public safety.
We also recognise the importance of maintaining confidence in the justice system for victims and their families when designing these reforms and will continue to assess these impacts throughout implementation. Ministers and policy officials have been pleased to meet with victims’ stakeholders through a mix of individual meetings, roundtables and sector-wide engagement groups. We remain committed to continuing to engage with the victim sector to understand the impact of these changes.