Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners convicted of terrorist-related offences were released on temporary licence in each of the last three years.

Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) enables offenders to participate in activities outside of prison, directly contributing to community resettlement, helping with their rehabilitation and development of a purposeful, law-abiding life. There is no entitlement to ROTL. It is discretionary and only allowed following a robust risk assessment of each offender.

Following the Fishmongers’ Hall attack, Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) acted quickly to strengthen safeguarding measures around ROTL. No terrorist or terrorist-risk offender will be released on temporary licence (ROTL) until their risk has first been assured by the Home Office and Ministry of Justice Joint Extremism Unit. We will continue to review this policy moving forward.

The requested information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Please find a table showing the number of people in custody for terrorism-related offences between September 2016 and September 2019.