Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many individuals in (a) male and (b) female prisons are recorded as being transsexual.

The attached table provides a breakdown of prisoners who have identified as gay or lesbian.

Data on the number of transgender prisoners is released as part of the Offender Equalities Report 2018/19. The most recent figures were released in November last year and noted that there were 163 transgender prisoners as at the end of March 2019, representing less than 0.2% of the total prison population at that time. Transgender prisoners were defined as those individuals known within prison to be currently living in, or are presenting in, a gender different to their sex assigned at birth and who have had a case conference (as defined by PSI 17/2016 The Care and Management of Transgender Offenders). Further information can be found at the following link;

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/848759/hmpps-offender-equalities-2018-19.pdf

We are committed to ensuring that gay, lesbian and transgender prisoners are treated fairly, lawfully and decently, with their rights and safety properly respected. Regardless of where an individual is being held, we expect that they will be respected.