Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison officers have been recruited since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
There have been 2,623 Band 3–5 prison officers who joined HMPPS between 5 July 2024 and 30 September 2025.
This data only covers Public Sector Prison establishments in England and does not include Private Sector Prison establishments.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many probation officers have been recruited since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Between 5 July 2024 and 30 September 2025, 55 qualified Band 4 probation officers joined HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS). This figure reflects only those who already held the required qualification at the point of appointment.
The majority of Band 4 probation officers join HMPPS as trainees and qualify within the Department, rather than being recruited directly into Band 4 roles.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners who are biologically (a) male and (b) female are housed in prisons designated for the opposite sex.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
As of 1 February 2026, there were seven prisoners on E Wing, the separate unit for transgender women at HMP Downview.
The information requested cannot be provided for the general female or male prison estates without breaching our legal obligations under data protection legislation. Where a request is made for statistical information and the total figure amounts to five or fewer, we must consider whether this would be likely to lead to the identification of individuals, and whether disclosure of this information would be in breach of our statutory obligations under the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018.
Transgender women with birth genitalia and/or any history of violent or sexual offending cannot be placed in the general women’s estate except in exceptional circumstances, where an exemption has been granted by Ministers. No transgender women have received such an exemption under this Government.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of new prisons places that will result from the building of prisons that received planning approval since 5 July 2024; what his proposed timetable is for these prison places to become available.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
As set out in the December 2024 10-Year Prison Capacity Strategy, we are committed to delivering an additional 14,000 prison places and aim to do so by 2031. Around 4,300 of these places have received planning permission since 5 July 2024. This includes full planning permission for a c.1,500 place prison near the existing HMPs Grendon and Springhill and outline planning permission for a c.1,700 place prison near the existing HMPs Garth and Wymott. We will seek to deliver these new places as quickly as possible and continue to identify opportunities to accelerate delivery of places wherever possible.
There are currently c.5,000 places under construction across the prison estate, including c.1,700 at our next new prison, HMP Welland Oaks, in Leicestershire.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to build new female prisons during this Parliament.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
We are committed to delivering an additional 14,000 prison places and aim to do so by 2031; we have already delivered more than 2,900 of these places since taking office.
The 10-Year Prison Capacity Strategy set out our ambition to establish a pipeline of future supply beyond these 14,000 places. Decisions regarding the female estate are kept under continuous review and are balanced against government ambition, demand for places, and the need to protect both prisoner and public safety.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish the modelling, estimates or projections for the numbers of offenders that will be immediately eligible for release post the introduction of the changes to the automatic release points as part of the Sentencing Bill 2025; and to include a breakdown of any such modelling, estimates or projections by offence and release numbers by individual days.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
As set out in the Sentencing Bill Impact Assessment, the Bill will ensure that the country has sufficient prison places by reducing demand by 7,500 places in 2028. The Bill will help ensure that the Criminal Justice System can continue to function with arrests and court trials continuing to go ahead, so avoiding a breakdown of law and order. The public will continue to be protected from the most serious offenders by ensuring prison places are available.
We are working across agencies to prepare and plan for implementation of the changes, and this Government is committed to ensuring that measures impacting sentencing and release are introduced safely, transparently and in a way that protects the public.
Release volumes for current prisoners will depend on whether they are subject to any ongoing criminal investigations or charges and therefore any additional sentences handed down by the Courts, and whether they are given added days for bad behaviour.
Around 17,000 prisoners are entirely excluded from the release point changes being brought forward in the Sentencing Bill.
The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes Accredited Official Statistics on prisoner releases as part of the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly (OMSQ) publication.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of current prisoners would be included in the earned progression model and eligible for release after completing (a) half of their sentence instead of two thirds and (b) one third of their sentence instead of half on (i) the day immediately after the Sentencing Bill is brought into force and (ii) each of the next 27 subsequent days, broken down by offence.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Around 17,000 prisoners are entirely excluded from the release point changes being brought forward in the Sentencing Bill. We are working across agencies to prepare and plan for implementation of the changes, and this Government is committed to ensuring that measures impacting sentencing and release are introduced safely, transparently and in a way that protects the public.
This information is not held as release volumes for current prisoners will depend on whether they are subject to any ongoing criminal investigations or charges and therefore any additional sentences handed down by the Courts, and whether they are given added days for bad behaviour.
The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes Accredited Official Statistics on prisoner releases as part of the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly (OMSQ) publication.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant the Answer of 11 November 2025 to Question 87889 on Prisoners' Release, how many of the current prisoner population would be (a) excluded from the earned progression model earlier release points, (b) included in the earned progression model and eligible for release at half way, broken down by offence and (c) included in the earned progression model and eligible for release at one third, broken down by offence.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Around 17,000 prisoners are entirely excluded from the release point changes being brought forward in the Sentencing Bill. We are working across agencies to prepare and plan for implementation of the changes, and this Government is committed to ensuring that measures impacting sentencing and release are introduced safely, transparently and in a way that protects the public.
This information is not held as release volumes for current prisoners will depend on whether they are subject to any ongoing criminal investigations or charges and therefore any additional sentences handed down by the Courts, and whether they are given added days for bad behaviour.
The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes Accredited Official Statistics on prisoner releases as part of the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly (OMSQ) publication.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the additional number of offenders will be entitled to release from prison on each day of the 28 days and then each month of the subsequent 11 months following the day of enactment of the Sentencing Bill alterations to automatic release points, broken down by offence.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Around 17,000 prisoners are entirely excluded from the release point changes being brought forward in the Sentencing Bill. We are working across agencies to prepare and plan for implementation of the changes, and this Government is committed to ensuring that measures impacting sentencing and release are introduced safely, transparently and in a way that protects the public.
Release volumes will depend on the crimes committed, the sentences given by the Court and whether the prisoner is given added days for bad behaviour.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will provide the prison population figures by (a) offence type and (b) sentence length in the most recent period for which data is available.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Detailed statistics on offenders in custody (including offence groups and sentence lengths) are published quarterly at Offender management statistics quarterly - GOV.UK.
Answers to the specific questions asked here can be found on Table 1.A.17 of the “Annual Prison Population: 2025” table on the most recent release.