Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the viability of releasing low-risk prisoners to ease overcrowding during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
We have no plans to release prisoners or to use prison ships in response to the Covid-19 outbreak.
HMPPS is doing everything it can to prevent the spread of COVID-19, based on the very latest scientific and medical advice. We are working closely with Public Health England, the NHS and the Department of Health and Social Care to manage the challenges we face.
In line with broader clinical advice, HMPPS has introduced a procedure for the protective isolation of individuals in prison custody when it is considered that they may be potentially infected with the virus.
Our capacity to isolate prisoners varies across the estate depending on the type of establishment, its configuration and the category of prisoner held. Each establishment has in place local contingency plans setting out how it will manage should isolation of prisoners be necessary.
People in prison custody who become unwell have the benefit of on-site NHS healthcare services which provide the first line assessment and treatment response. HMPPS has worked closely with our partners in the NHS to make arrangements for transfer to hospital should an individual be sufficiently unwell to require hospital admission, building on our business as usual procedures for access to healthcare.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the viability of using prison ships to ease overcrowding during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
We have no plans to release prisoners or to use prison ships in response to the Covid-19 outbreak.
HMPPS is doing everything it can to prevent the spread of COVID-19, based on the very latest scientific and medical advice. We are working closely with Public Health England, the NHS and the Department of Health and Social Care to manage the challenges we face.
In line with broader clinical advice, HMPPS has introduced a procedure for the protective isolation of individuals in prison custody when it is considered that they may be potentially infected with the virus.
Our capacity to isolate prisoners varies across the estate depending on the type of establishment, its configuration and the category of prisoner held. Each establishment has in place local contingency plans setting out how it will manage should isolation of prisoners be necessary.
People in prison custody who become unwell have the benefit of on-site NHS healthcare services which provide the first line assessment and treatment response. HMPPS has worked closely with our partners in the NHS to make arrangements for transfer to hospital should an individual be sufficiently unwell to require hospital admission, building on our business as usual procedures for access to healthcare.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times has PAVA been deployed in each prison in each of the last 12 months.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
PAVA spray is being provided to all band 3-5 staff in the adult male estate and it is currently being rolled out across the estate. Staff need appropriate training to use PAVA and only prisons who have the key worker scheme – which is vital in building relationships between offenders and staff – will receive it.
The following uses of PAVA have been recorded in the last 12 months;
4 pilot sites were live: March 2019* |
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PAVA Drawn OR Used* |
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Hull | 2 |
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Wealstun | 1 |
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Risley | 2 |
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Preston | 0 |
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|
|
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Live: April 2019 - Feb 2020 |
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Drawn (not used) | Used |
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Hull | 0 | 10 |
|
Wealstun | 1 | 6 |
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Risley | 7 | 20 |
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Preston | 6 | 13 |
|
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Live: October 2019 - Feb 2020 |
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Brinsford | 0 | 1 |
|
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Live: December 2019 - Feb 2020 |
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Hindley | 1 | 2** |
|
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*pre-April 2019 the collection system did not ask staff to distinguish between PAVA being drawn and/or being used. |
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**accidental uses by staff with no prisoners present. | |||
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times have rigid handcuffs been used in each prison in each of the last 12 months.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
Rigid bar handcuffs are being rolled out to all band 3-5 staff in the adult male estate.
Data on the number of times that rigid bar handcuffs have been used is recorded locally. As we do not currently hold this information centrally, we are unable to provide the number of times that these have been used in prisons. However, we are piloting the use of a Digital Tool for establishments to record this and other Use of Force data, which will improve our ability to interrogate and extract any relevant data, such as this.
Rigid bar handcuffs are only one of the tools we are giving prison officers to help them do their job more safely. This also includes body worn cameras and PAVA spray.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Prison Service Pay Review Body Summary of England and Wales Visits 2019, published in February 2020, what steps he is taking to address the finding in that report that the Band 3 prison officer pay scale was not a wage staff could live on or afford a mortgage with.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
We are giving staff the tools they need to do the job safely – rolling out PAVA incapacitant spray, and investing £100 million, as part of a wider £2.75 billion package, to fund tough airport-style security that will clamp down on the illicit items which fuel violence and hinder rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Justice is actively engaged with the Prison Service Pay Review Body in support of their evidence gathering process and we look forward to receiving their considered recommendations later this year. To maintain the integrity of this independent process we will not be commenting on any material that will not be formally published. The document referred to is not a published document.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Prison Service Pay Review Body Summary of England and Wales Visits 2019, published in February 2020, what steps he is taking to address the finding in that report that Operational Support Grade staff reported that they could earn more working in factories and supermarkets.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
We are giving staff the tools they need to do the job safely – rolling out PAVA incapacitant spray, and investing £100 million, as part of a wider £2.75 billion package, to fund tough airport-style security that will clamp down on the illicit items which fuel violence and hinder rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Justice is actively engaged with the Prison Service Pay Review Body in support of their evidence gathering process and we look forward to receiving their considered recommendations later this year. To maintain the integrity of this independent process we will not be commenting on any material that will not be formally published. The document referred to is not a published document.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Prison Service Pay Review Body Summary of England and Wales Visits 2019, published in February 2020, what steps he is taking to address the finding in that report that Band 3 prison officers were reported to be leaving the service for a whole host of different types of employment, some of which had much lower levels of violence.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
We are giving staff the tools they need to do the job safely – rolling out PAVA incapacitant spray, and investing £100 million, as part of a wider £2.75 billion package, to fund tough airport-style security that will clamp down on the illicit items which fuel violence and hinder rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Justice is actively engaged with the Prison Service Pay Review Body in support of their evidence gathering process and we look forward to receiving their considered recommendations later this year. To maintain the integrity of this independent process we will not be commenting on any material that will not be formally published. The document referred to is not a published document.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Prison Service Pay Review Body Summary of England and Wales Visits 2019, published in February 2020, what steps he is taking to address the finding in that report that there was an overall picture of low morale with a feeling that the HM Prison and Probation Service did not value its staff.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
We are giving staff the tools they need to do the job safely – rolling out PAVA incapacitant spray, and investing £100 million, as part of a wider £2.75 billion package, to fund tough airport-style security that will clamp down on the illicit items which fuel violence and hinder rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Justice is actively engaged with the Prison Service Pay Review Body in support of their evidence gathering process and we look forward to receiving their considered recommendations later this year. To maintain the integrity of this independent process we will not be commenting on any material that will not be formally published. The document referred to is not a published document.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Prison Service Pay Review Body Summary of England and Wales Visits 2019, published in February 2020, what steps he is taking to address the finding in that report that some prisons were struggling with the roll out of the Key Worker scheme due to staffing levels, and a high non-effective rate, which had delayed the associated roll-out of the use of PAVA spray in prisons.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
We are giving staff the tools they need to do the job safely – rolling out PAVA incapacitant spray, and investing £100 million, as part of a wider £2.75 billion package, to fund tough airport-style security that will clamp down on the illicit items which fuel violence and hinder rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Justice is actively engaged with the Prison Service Pay Review Body in support of their evidence gathering process and we look forward to receiving their considered recommendations later this year. To maintain the integrity of this independent process we will not be commenting on any material that will not be formally published. The document referred to is not a published document.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of prison officers were equipped with PAVA spray on (a) 1 January 2019, (b) 1 April 2019, (c) 1 July 2019 (d) 1 October 2019 and (e) 1 January 2020.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
PAVA spray is being provided to all band 3-5 staff in the adult male estate and it is currently being rolled out across the estate. We are able to provide the number of establishments who have completed their training activity and therefore in a position to issue PAVA to their staff.
1 January 2019, 4 pilot prisons
1 April 2019, 4 pilot prisons
1 July 2019 4 pilot prisons
1 October 2019, 6 establishments (inclusive of the 4 pilot prisons)
1 January 2020, 7 establishments (inclusive of the 4 pilot prisons)
We are giving prison officers body worn cameras, rigid bar handcuffs and PAVA spray to help them do their job more safely.
Staff need appropriate training to use PAVA and only prisons who have rolled out the key worker scheme – which is vital in building relationships between offenders and staff – will receive it.