Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many community rehabilitation companies have submitted evidence to his Department citing financial difficulties in providing rehabilitation services.

We work closely with probation providers to make sure they meet their contractual obligations and understand any barriers to delivery.

Following discussions with Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) and their parent companies, in 2017 we made changes to contracts so that payments to them more accurately reflect the costs of delivering services. This was set out in a written statement to Parliament in July last year.

We have been clear that CRC performance needs to improve, and are in commercial discussions with providers to make sure we secure the quality of services we need.