Oral Answers to Questions

Stuart Anderson Excerpts

Tuesday 8th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Nicholas Dakin]

My hon. Friend draws attention to another horrific case. I think the best way of proceeding is to take up his offer of a meeting.

[Stuart Anderson (South Shropshire) (Con)]

19. If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of deporting all foreign criminals on prison capacity.

[The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Shabana Mahmood)]

Removals under this Government have been higher over the past 12 months than under the Conservatives. We are going further by expanding the early removal scheme so that prisoners with no right to be in this country will be deported and banned from ever returning to the UK after serving 30% of their custodial sentence.

[Stuart Anderson]

UK prisons are at full capacity and 12% of prison places are occupied by foreign nationals. Will the Secretary of State look to deport all foreign nationals who commit offences in our country to free up that space?

[Shabana Mahmood]

As I say, we have already deported more people in the first year of this Government than was the case under the previous Government, so we are going faster on foreign national offender removals from our prison estate. The legal changes we are making will bring more offenders into scope earlier in their sentence, making them eligible for deportation.