Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were (a) convicted for theft of a motor vehicle excluding aggravated vehicle taking for each year in 2020-2024 and (b) did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for theft of a motor vehicle excluding aggravated vehicle taking, where the number of occasions was 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9+ previous convictions.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

(a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types); and,

(b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

To note, figures from 2020 and 2021 have been affected by measures taken to combat the COVID-19 Pandemic and the subsequent effect this has had on the court backlog. Additionally, figures from 2022 will have been affected by the Criminal Bar Association strikes.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were (a) convicted for theft from a vehicle other than a motor vehicle for each year in 2020-2024 and (b) did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for theft from a vehicle other than a motor vehicle, where the number of occasions was 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9+ previous convictions.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

(a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types); and,

(b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

To note, figures from 2020 and 2021 have been affected by measures taken to combat the COVID-19 Pandemic and the subsequent effect this has had on the court backlog. Additionally, figures from 2022 will have been affected by the Criminal Bar Association strikes.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were (a) convicted for aggravated taking of a vehicle for each year in 2020-2024 and (b) did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for aggravated taking of a vehicle, where the number of occasions was 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9+ previous convictions.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

(a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types); and,

(b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

To note, figures from 2020 and 2021 have been affected by measures taken to combat the COVID-19 Pandemic and the subsequent effect this has had on the court backlog. Additionally, figures from 2022 will have been affected by the Criminal Bar Association strikes.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were (a) convicted of theft from a motor vehicle for each year in 2020-2024 and (b) did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted of theft from a motor vehicle, where the number of occasions was 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9+ previous convictions.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

(a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types); and,

(b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

To note, figures from 2020 and 2021 have been affected by measures taken to combat the COVID-19 Pandemic and the subsequent effect this has had on the court backlog. Additionally, figures from 2022 will have been affected by the Criminal Bar Association strikes.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were (a) convicted of theft of a pedal cycle for each year in 2020-2024 and (b) did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for theft of a pedal cycle, where the number of occasions was 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9+ previous convictions.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

(a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types); and,

(b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

To note, figures from 2020 and 2021 have been affected by measures taken to combat the COVID-19 Pandemic and the subsequent effect this has had on the court backlog. Additionally, figures from 2022 will have been affected by the Criminal Bar Association strikes.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for production, supply and possession with intent to supply Class A drugs for each year from 2020 to 2024, and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for production, supply, or possession with intent to supply Class A drugs.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)

b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for stealing from the person of another for each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for stealing from the person of another.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)

b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for possession of knives for each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did tot receive an immediate custodial sentence by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for possession of knives.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)

b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for possession of firearms for each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for possession of firearms.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)

b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for (a) criminal damage and (b) arson in each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for (i) criminal damage and (ii) arson from 2020 to 2024.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:

a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)

b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.

This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the costs arising from his role as Deputy Prime Minister are being met from the department’s budget.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

As outlined on gov.uk, the Deputy Prime Minister acts on behalf of the department and also deputises for the Prime Minister. Engagements completed on the Prime Minister's behalf, including international visits, are generally paid for by the Cabinet Office.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what fiscal steps her Department is taking to encourage careers in aviation.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport encourages careers in the aviation industry through its Generation Aviation programme. The Reach for the Sky Challenge Fund, a part of the Generation Aviation programme, administered by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), funds outreach activity with the aim of showcasing career paths, boosting skills and futureproofing the aviation sector.

The Department also funds the CAA’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programme. The STEM programme is aimed at growing interest in aviation careers through identifying and addressing barriers and growing and diversifying the talent pool.

Since the inception of both programmes, the Department has committed close to £6 million in funding, reaching over one million young people.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what meetings (a) she, (b) Ministers, (c) special advisers and (d) officials in her Department have had with the organisers of the Forest City 1 campaign.

Answered by James Murray - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Treasury Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the link below.

HM Treasury: ministerial overseas travel and meetings - GOV.UK

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans his Department has to publish an advertisement for the position of HM Chief Inspector of Prisons once it becomes vacant in October 2026.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Following consultation with the Justice Select Committee (JSC) about campaign plans to recruit to this position, we plan to advertise the role shortly. We will update the JSC on the timetable in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 1 April 2026 to Question 123531 on Prisons: Meat, what the annual cost of meat served in prisons has been in each year since 2020, broken down by individual prison.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The Department does not hold information on the cost of specific food items, including meat, or on expenditure associated with multi -choice or pre-selected menus. Prison expenditure on food is recorded at an aggregate level in management accounts as total prisoner food costs: it is not broken down by individual prisons, food types, menu options or dietary components. Food budgets are managed locally by Governors in the public estate, or Directors in privately managed prisons, who have flexibility within their overall allocations to meet the needs of their prison population, including religious, cultural and medical dietary requirements.

All prisons across England and Wales provide prisoners with a choice of at least five meal options at both lunch and for the evening meal. As a minimum, these options include one meat dish, one vegan dish, one vegetarian dish, one Halal dish, and one additional alternative option. This requirement was established under PSO 5000 (Prison Catering Services), and was subsequently re-affirmed in its successor policy, PSI 44/2010 Catering: Meals for Prisoners, which came into effect in October 2010.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many individuals were assessed or monitored by the Joint Extremism Unit in each calendar year from 2017 to 2025 inclusive, broken down by the extremism or risk classification category used internally by the Unit.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Data on the number of people serving custodial sentences for terrorist offences are published by the Home Office as part of its quarterly statistical bulletin Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000 and subsequent legislation: Arrests, outcomes, and stop and search, Great Britain, which is available at: Operation of police powers under TACT 2000, to December 2025 - GOV.UK

Details of the risk classification are withheld on the grounds of national security.

The Joint Extremism Unit also monitors and assesses individuals who have not been convicted of terrorism or terrorism-connected offences, but nevertheless represent terrorist risk. Data regarding these individuals are also withheld on national security grounds.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners with at least one life sentence have been granted (a) supervised, and (b) unsupervised Release on Temporary Licence in each year since 2020, broken down by offence.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) for prisoners serving life sentences is subject to particularly stringent risk assessment and senior decision making, and is granted only in limited circumstances, with public protection as the paramount consideration.

Data on prisoners serving life sentences who are released on ROTL are published regularly in the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly, which include information on the number of individuals serving life sentences released on ROTL, by year: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/offender-management-statistics-quarterly.

Data on supervised ROTL is not included within centrally collated statistical data or published ROTL figures. As a result, a breakdown of life sentence prisoners released on ROTL by supervised / unsupervised ROTL and offence would only be possible to obtain at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether local police forces will be given additional (a) officers, (b) funding, and (c) logistical support when (i) a new prison opens and (ii) a new prison expansion is completed in their area.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The Ministry of Justice works closely with other government departments and local services, including emergency services, throughout all phases of new prison builds and expansions.

Decisions regarding the allocation of police resources is a matter for Chief Constables and directly elected Police and Crime Commissioners, or their equivalents. They are best placed to make these decisions based on their knowledge of local need, experience, and in line with their existing budget.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to support the provision of the installation of additional (a) CCTV and (b) speed cameras in areas where (i) new prisons open and (ii) new prison expansions are completed.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

New prisons are designed with robust security measures, including full CCTV coverage. Expansion teams work with existing prisons to ensure full CCTV coverage of new buildings and associated spaces.

There are no plans for the Ministry of Justice to expand the provision of speed cameras near new prison or expansion sites; the installation and management of speed cameras is a matter for the relevant local authorities and the police.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 1 April 2026 to Question 123532, when his Department expects to equip up to 10,000 staff with protective body armour.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

HM Prison & Probation Service is committed to equipping up to 10,000 staff with protective body armour by March 2027. Work is continuing to support delivery against this commitment, ensuring it is implemented in a controlled and proportionate manner, with appropriate governance and oversight in place.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions his Department has had with local police forces for areas where new prison spaces are being planned.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The Ministry of Justice works closely with emergency services throughout the planning, construction and mobilisation phases of all new prison builds and expansions.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners with at least one life sentence have been transferred to open prison conditions in each year since 2020, broken down by offence.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

To answer the question would incur disproportionate cost as it would require a search of individual prisoner records. Centrally-collated data on prisoner transfers cover transfers between a predominant function closed prison and a predominant function open prison but does not distinguish instances of prisoner movements between a ‘closed’ wing and an ‘open’ wing where a prison has both types of function. Therefore, this would require a search of individual prisoner records.

Public protection remains the priority and prisoners will only be transferred to open conditions if it is assessed that it is safe to do so.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 1 April 2026 to Question 123531 on Prisons: Meat, what sum his Department spent on providing multi-choice, pre-select menus for (a) lunchtime and (b) evening meals in prisons in each year since 2020.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The Department does not hold information on the cost of specific food items, including meat, or on expenditure associated with multi -choice or pre-selected menus. Prison expenditure on food is recorded at an aggregate level in management accounts as total prisoner food costs: it is not broken down by individual prisons, food types, menu options or dietary components. Food budgets are managed locally by Governors in the public estate, or Directors in privately managed prisons, who have flexibility within their overall allocations to meet the needs of their prison population, including religious, cultural and medical dietary requirements.

All prisons across England and Wales provide prisoners with a choice of at least five meal options at both lunch and for the evening meal. As a minimum, these options include one meat dish, one vegan dish, one vegetarian dish, one Halal dish, and one additional alternative option. This requirement was established under PSO 5000 (Prison Catering Services), and was subsequently re-affirmed in its successor policy, PSI 44/2010 Catering: Meals for Prisoners, which came into effect in October 2010.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when were prisons required to provide the option of a (a) vegan dish, (b) vegetarian dish, and (c) Halal dish for their lunch and evening meal menus.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The Department does not hold information on the cost of specific food items, including meat, or on expenditure associated with multi -choice or pre-selected menus. Prison expenditure on food is recorded at an aggregate level in management accounts as total prisoner food costs: it is not broken down by individual prisons, food types, menu options or dietary components. Food budgets are managed locally by Governors in the public estate, or Directors in privately managed prisons, who have flexibility within their overall allocations to meet the needs of their prison population, including religious, cultural and medical dietary requirements.

All prisons across England and Wales provide prisoners with a choice of at least five meal options at both lunch and for the evening meal. As a minimum, these options include one meat dish, one vegan dish, one vegetarian dish, one Halal dish, and one additional alternative option. This requirement was established under PSO 5000 (Prison Catering Services), and was subsequently re-affirmed in its successor policy, PSI 44/2010 Catering: Meals for Prisoners, which came into effect in October 2010.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department taking to help prevent prisoners from avoiding their Release on Temporary Licence.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) is a key part of preparing individuals for safe resettlement into the community. The Ministry of Justice takes the risk of prisoners failing to return from ROTL extremely seriously. I have assumed that it is this risk that you are referring to when you ask about preventing prisoners from ‘avoiding their Release on Temporary Licence'.

ROTL is only granted following a rigorous risk assessment and is available only to prisoners who meet strict eligibility criteria. Decisions are taken on a case-by-case basis, taking account of the prisoner’s behaviour and compliance in custody, the nature of their index offence, and the purpose of the release.

Where ROTL is approved, prisoners are subject to clear licence conditions, monitoring requirements and, where appropriate, curfews and checks on employment or resettlement placements. The inherent risk that offenders breach the trust placed in them is closely managed through robust controls.

Any failure to return from ROTL is a criminal offence and can result in recall to custody, removal of future ROTL, and prosecution with a custodial sentence imposed. Where a prisoner fails to return, prisons and the police act promptly to locate and return the individual to custody.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on whether Suffolk Police are to be given additional (a) officers, (b) funding and (c) logistical support when the expansion of HMP Highpoint is completed.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.