Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that those remanded in custody for more than six months receive access to (a) education, (b) work and (c) mental health support.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Ministry of Justice is committed to ensuring that individuals held in custody, including those on remand, have access to appropriate rehabilitative, educational, and wellbeing support while in prison.
Remand prisoners are eligible to access the core education provision available in prisons. This may include literacy, numeracy, English for Speakers of Other Languages, basic digital skills, and library services. On arrival, all prisoners undergo initial screening for learning needs and receive an individual Learning and Work Plan to support progression. Governors must ensure that education is available to all prisoners who can benefit, in line with Prison Rule 32, and remand prisoners are encouraged to participate in these opportunities. In addition to education, remand prisoners can take part in work related activities where they wish to and where operationally feasible. These activities provide purposeful engagement and help maintain routine and structure during custody.
Together with our health partners, we are committed to ensuring that people in prison have access to an equivalent standard, range and quality of health care in prisons to that available in the wider community. This is reflected in the National Partnership Agreement on Health and Social Care in England. All people in prison, including those held on remand, have access to integrated mental health services commissioned by NHS England. This includes access to a range of treatments and interventions within prison as set out in the national service specification for mental health care in prisons.
For prisoners with severe mental health needs, the Mental Health Act received Royal Assent earlier this month and contains several flagship reforms to improve access to mental health care and treatment, including, but not limited to, provisions to:
Introduce a new statutory 28-day time limit for transfers from prison and other places of detention to hospital to reduce unnecessary delays experienced by prisoners who require mental health treatment.
Stop courts temporarily detaining people with severe mental illness in prison as a ‘place of safety’ whilst awaiting a hospital bed for treatment or assessment under the Mental Health Act; and
End the use of remand for own protection under the Bail Act where the court’s sole concern is the defendant’s mental health.
We will implement these reforms as soon as it is safe to do so.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data his Department holds on the length of time spent in detention without trial by defendants charged under the Terrorism Act 2000 for (a) supporting or (b) being a member of Palestine Action.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
No-one is being detained under the Terrorism Act 2000 for supporting, or being a member of, Palestine Action.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make it his policy to review the status of people held on remand in custody for more than six months to determine whether they should be considered for conditional release.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The decision to remand an individual in custody or to grant bail is solely a matter for the independent judiciary acting in accordance with the Bail Act 1976. With limited exceptions, the Bail Act creates a presumption in favour of bail for defendants involved in criminal proceedings. This recognises that a person should not be deprived of his/her liberty unless that is necessary for the protection of the public or the delivery of justice.
There is a well-established process that enables remanded prisoners to apply to the court for bail, and we have expanded the Bail Information Service over the last year to provide more support.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she has taken with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to review the (a) safe and (b) effective use of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 in cases where an individual has fluctuating capacity to make (i) safe and (ii) informed decisions.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice has responsibility for the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005, which provides a framework for making decisions on behalf of adults who are unable to do so for themselves.
The 2007 statutory Code of Practice issued under the MCA already provides guidance to practitioners and others on the conduct of capacity assessments in keeping with the principles of the MCA. Paragraphs 4.26 and 4.27 and Chapter 3 of the Code provide guidance on people with fluctuating capacity and how to support them to make a decision.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to review the system for bereavement damages.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government is working to deliver a major series of reforms to the civil justice system and while the issue of bereavement damages is being kept under review, there are no immediate plans to undertake a formal review of this issue.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many offenders convicted of non-sexual offences against children have been released under early release schemes; and what steps her Department is taking to supervise those offenders.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
This Government inherited prisons days from collapse. We were forced to take decisive action to prevent overcrowding and protect the public. Certain offences have been excluded from the SDS change including sex offences irrespective of sentence length; serious violent offences with a sentence of four years or more; specified offences linked to domestic abuse irrespective of sentence length (including stalking, coercive or controlling behaviour and non-fatal strangulation); as well as offences concerning national security.
Offenders released are subject to strict licence conditions, including curfews, exclusion zones, and regular supervision by the Probation Service. Any breach of these conditions can result in immediate recall to custody.
We have published SDS40 release data alongside the quarterly Offender Management Statistics: Standard Determinate Sentence (SDS40) release data - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many offenders convicted of offences against children have been released under early release schemes; and what continuing supervision is taking place.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This Government inherited prisons days from collapse. We were forced to take decisive action to stop our prisons overflowing and keep the public safe. All sex offences, irrespective of sentence length, are excluded from SDS40.
Offenders released on licence are subject to strict conditions, such as curfews and exclusion zones, and face being immediately returned to prison if they break the rules.