Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when his Department most recently notified stakeholders that Operation Safeguard might be activated.

The activation of Operation Safeguard was announced on 30 November 2022, via an oral statement. The Ministry of Justice issued a series of letters to key stakeholders on the activation of Operation Safeguard prior to the oral statement.

Operation Safeguard is a contingency that provides additional headroom for use as needed. We are not currently housing prisoners in police cells as a result of Operation Safeguard, however we remain in regular contact with relevant police forces. Before any police cells are used to house prisoners under Operation Safeguard, HMPPS will issue clear operational guidance to its staff and partners.

Operation Safeguard was previously triggered in 2006 and then in 2007 – 2008, and 82,615 prisoners were released between 2007-2010 under the early release scheme that followed.