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Written Question
Mental Capacity: Payments
Monday 14th November 2022

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to publish their response to the Mental Capacity Act: Small Payments Scheme, which closed on 12 January, to help disabled families access Child Trust Funds.

Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

We are preparing the Government's response to the consultation and are aiming to provide an update to the House in the near future. The consultation exposed a number of issues which warranted further consideration, especially in relation to the design, security, simplicity and effectiveness of a scheme when compared to existing processes. In the meantime we have been collaborating with the Court of Protection to improve access to payments under current legislation, and pilot processes and documentation are currently being developed.


Written Question
Prisons: Visits
Wednesday 24th February 2021

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken in the last 12 months to maintain visiting rights for prisoners while there have been restrictions in place to address the COVID-19 pandemic; how many visits were permitted for each category of prisoner each month; what estimate they have made of the percentage of all prisoners who have received visitors since March 2020; and whether all prison visitors are required to produce a negative COVID-19 test.

Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar

In response to COVID-19, the MoJ/HMPPS took decisive action to protect staff and prisoners. These changes are set out in ‘COVID-19: National Framework for Prison Regimes and Services’, available attached and here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-national-framework-for-prison-regimes-and-services. In line with this framework and public health advice, at different times during the pandemic social face-to-face visits in the adult estate have had to be temporarily suspended (other than on exceptional compassionate grounds which need to be agreed in advance with the prison). Visits to children in the Youth Custody Estate (YCS) have continued. Official/ legal visits have continued, conducted remotely where possible.

Social visits during the pandemic have taken place in line with the National Framework and a regime Exception Delivery Model with additional measures put in place to ensure that they can do so in a COVID-19 secure manner. These have had to include restricting the numbers of visits, length of visits and numbers of visitors in each session. We do not require evidence of a negative test as a pre-cursor to visiting. Decisions as to how visits operate at each establishment within this framework are determined through locally led assessments informed by Public Health advice. Information on how visits operate is set out on each establishment’s information page on GOV.UK, available here; https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/prisons-in-england-and-wales, and communicated to those wishing to visit as part of the local booking arrangements. In line with the National Framework, arrangements for social visits remain under constant review in light of public health guidance.

Data on the numbers of visits is not collated and held nationally. This information cannot therefore be provided without disproportionate cost.

As part of a wider package of measures to enable those in prison and the YCS to maintain contact with families and significant others throughout the pandemic, we also introduced circa 1,500 additional mobile PIN phones, have provided additional PIN credit and have introduced an emergency secure Video Calling service which to date has supported over 100,000 calls.


Written Question
Prisons: Coronavirus
Tuesday 15th September 2020

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what provisions have been made in Her Majesty’s Prisons for visiting rights for prisoners since the introduction of restrictions to address the COVID-19 pandemic; how many (1) visits, and (2) visitors, are permitted for each category of prisoner each week; and what special protective measures have been introduced for (1) visitors, and (2) prisoners, to ensure their protection against COVID-19.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

We fully recognise the importance of family contact for those in custody in line with the recommendations of Lord Farmer’s Reviews. This is why following the necessary suspension of prison visits in March, to keep prisoners, their families and staff safe during the pandemic, we introduced a range of measures. We rolled-out more than 1,200 secure mobile PIN phone handsets which are being used to contact family and friends, bolstered support for the Prisoner’s Families Helpline and introduced secure video calls which are currently operating in over 100 prisons across England and Wales, including all female and youth establishments.

We published arrangements for the recommencement of face-to-face social visits in the National Framework for Prison Regimes and Services, and visits recommenced in early July, in an adapted, Covid-secure manner. Currently most prisons have now commenced physical visits.

Currently, up to two adults and two children are permitted to visit for a minimum of 45 minutes in prisons where it is safe to do so. Guidance on visits protocols for each prison, including steps we are taking to keep visitors safe, is published on GOV.UK at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/visit-someone-in-prison-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic

This sets out differences in the adult and youth estates but otherwise this applies for visits to all categories of prisoner. We aim to continue to expand visit arrangements as part of further relaxations to prison regimes, as it is safe to do so, and in line with public health advice.


Written Question
Repossession Orders
Monday 6th July 2020

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that courts deal more speedily with landlord and tenant cases concerning anti-social behaviour and domestic violence, once possession cases related to rented housing recommence.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

The listing of court cases, including possession, is a judicial function. The Master of Rolls has set up a judiciary-led cross-sector working group to consider and address matters affecting litigants to inform arrangements that will be in place when the current stay on possession is lifted. The work of this group will consider the needs of all users involved in the possession process.
Written Question
Repossession Orders
Monday 6th July 2020

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many possession orders had been made by the courts following a claim by (1) private, and (2) social landlords, and were outstanding prior to eviction proceedings being suspended from 27 March.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

The requested information is not held by HMCTS.


Written Question
County Courts
Wednesday 28th December 2016

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to penalise companies which repeatedly take action against individuals who do not lodge a defence and who are subsequently discovered not to have received any notification of the relevant County Court action.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

On 23 December the Ministry of Justice announced a consultation on ways to protect people from having their credit ratings affected despite being unaware of the claims made against them. The consultation, which will be launched in the spring will consider how the current system can be improved and reinforced to ensure that companies take all reasonable steps before they are able to apply to a court for a claim. We will also examine to what extent unscrupulous debt agencies have contributed to the problem.

To accompany the consultation the Ministry of Justice will also launch a new public advice campaign on how to protect people unaware of their debts and will remind people of the important of informing companies of their new address.


Written Question
County Courts
Wednesday 28th December 2016

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to ensure that companies which sue individuals for non-payment of monies in the county courts have taken adequate steps to ensure that they have the correct and up-to-date address for the person against whom they are taking action, in those cases where the individual does not lodge a defence.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

On 23 December the Ministry of Justice announced a consultation on ways to protect people from having their credit ratings affected despite being unaware of the claims made against them. The consultation, which will be launched in the spring will consider how the current system can be improved and reinforced to ensure that companies take all reasonable steps before they are able to apply to a court for a claim. We will also examine to what extent unscrupulous debt agencies have contributed to the problem.

To accompany the consultation the Ministry of Justice will also launch a new public advice campaign on how to protect people unaware of their debts and will remind people of the important of informing companies of their new address.


Written Question
County Courts
Wednesday 28th December 2016

Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to strengthen procedures designed to protect those against whom costs are awarded without their knowing that a case is proceeding in the County Court, resulting in a County Court Judgment being registered on their credit record.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

On 23 December the Ministry of Justice announced a consultation on ways to protect people from having their credit ratings affected despite being unaware of the claims made against them. The consultation, which will be launched in the spring will consider how the current system can be improved and reinforced to ensure that companies take all reasonable steps before they are able to apply to a court for a claim. We will also examine to what extent unscrupulous debt agencies have contributed to the problem.

To accompany the consultation the Ministry of Justice will also launch a new public advice campaign on how to protect people unaware of their debts and will remind people of the important of informing companies of their new address.