Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what funds he will make available to the Abertawe Bro Morgannwg to provide healthcare for prisoners in the proposed prison in Port Talbot.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The proposed new prison at Port Talbot is part of our plans to reform and modernise the prison estate. We will work closely with our partners in the NHS in Wales and the Welsh Government to plan for quality health services for this new prison. No decisions have yet been made on arrangements for these services.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners have caused (a) harm to themselves, (b) harm to other prisoners and (c) harm to members of the prison service in (i) HMP Parc, (ii) HMP Bure and (iii) HMP The Mount in the past 24 months.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
Safety and security in prisons is our top priority, and we take the mental health and wellbeing of prisoners and staff extremely seriously. The precise information requested could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.
There is published data on the number of self-harm incidents, assaults by prisoners on other prisoners and assaults by prisoners on staff at each prison establishment within the Safety in Custody statistics, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/safety-in-custody-quarterly-update-to-march-2017
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, Whether he or Ministers of his Department have plans to attend the public meeting in Port Talbot on 20 September 2017 on the proposed siting of a prison in Baglan, Port Talbot.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The site at Port Talbot was proposed along with a number of other sites by the Welsh Government. The Welsh Government continue to support us in redeveloping the site for the purpose of building a new prison.
It is not customary for Ministers to attend public consultation events about obtaining planning permission for new prisons.
My officials will be holding a two-day public event about our plans for the new prison in Port Talbot, in due course. This event will be over and above the statutory consultation process required.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) disturbances, (b) riots, (c) attempted escapes and (d) successful escapes there have been from Category C prisons in the last (i) 12 months, (ii) three years, (iii) five years, (iv) seven years and (v) 10 years.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
To provide all of the information requested would incur disproportionate cost. In addition, not all of the information held covers the entire timeframe requested.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the process is for (a) determining the category of prisoners to be held in a prison and (b) changing the category of prisoners to be incarcerated in (i) an existing and (ii) a planned prison.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
All prisoners undergo a thorough individual risk assessment following conviction and sentencing and placed in a prison suitable to their risk. Assessed risks are risk of escape and of harm to the public in the event of escape/abscond and risk to the good order of the establishment and the safety of those within it.
The prison estate is organised in categories of risk ranging from category A for the highest risk offenders to category D for those posing the lowest risk. Balanced alongside this is the need to separate specific cohorts of prisoners such as women and young people and deal with prisoners who are particularly difficult, or whose management requires particular expertise, such as very high risk or especially vulnerable prisoners.
The procedure for changing a prison’s security categorisation would be the same for new prisons as existing ones. This includes a comprehensive assessment of the physical security of a prison’s infrastructure, the necessary staffing levels to manage the desired population and the adequacy of ancillary and partner services, including health care, activities and education.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how his Department determines whether (a) an existing or (b) a new prison is run by a (i) public or (ii) private operator.
Answered by Dominic Raab
No decision has been made on whether to compete the new prisons and there are currently no plans to compete existing prisons. A number of factors are considered in determining whether to compete the operation of prisons. These include the outcomes we want to achieve and what is best value for money for the taxpayer.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which criteria were used by his Department to identify land on which to build the proposed prison in Port Talbot.
Answered by Dominic Raab
The site-specific criteria used to select potential sites for a proposed new prison are as follows:
We evaluated over 20 sites in South Wales. We prioritised publicly owned land as we estimated this would provide better value for money for the taxpayer, due to the economic and strategic benefit of doing this rather than going to the market. A strategic preference for sites located along the M4 motorway corridor, for accessibility, and travel time benefits were also identified. This led to 11 publicly owned sites being considered further, with Port Talbot being selected as the best potential site for a new prison build, taking into account the criteria listed above.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment her Department has made of the consistency and proportionality of imprisonment for public protection sentencing.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
Assessment of imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentencing found that it had been used far more widely than intended. This assessment led to its abolition by the Coalition Government in 2012 and its replacement with a new regime of determinate sentences alongside life sentences for the most serious offenders. We are taking steps, namely the creation of a case progression unit and the ongoing implementation of a joint NOMS and Parole Board action plan, to improve the opportunities given to remaining IPP prisoners to progress towards release. However, IPP prisoners should continue to be detained if the level of risk they pose to the public cannot be safely managed in the community.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent estimate she has made of the level of procurement of British steel by her Department in the last 12 months.
Answered by Phillip Lee
The information is not centrally held in the form requested. Over the last year Government has acted to level the playing field for UK steel producers in light of the complex global challenges faced by the UK steel sector. Last December Government issued guidance to central government departments on how to ensure that they take full account of the value provided by UK steel producers when conducting their procurement activities. This guidance is also being extended to the wider public sector.