Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of assaults on prison staff in (a) young offenders institutions and (b) prisons were investigated by police forces external to the prison disciplinary system in (i) West Yorkshire and (ii) England in 2019.

Any prisoner who commits an act of violence whether that be against a fellow inmate or member of staff can expect to have action taken against them.

Currently, data is not held centrally on the number of assaults that are committed by prisoners against staff in young offender’s institutions or prisons that were investigated by Police in West Yorkshire and England. This is being reviewed with the aim to collate data from all establishments for all crimes committed in prison, whilst also creating guidance on how to appropriately refer crimes committed in prison to the police.

The ‘Crime in Prison Referral Agreement’ was created in May 2019 and sets out the agreement between Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS), National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). The aim is to ensure that acts of criminality that occur in prison are appropriately addressed within the Criminal Justice System.

In line with the Crime in Prison Referral Agreement, assaults against members of staff will be referred to the police for investigation and consideration for prosecution where appropriate. Less serious assaults, are more appropriately dealt with by the prison disciplinary system.

The courts retain the discretion to decide whether sentences should be served concurrently or consecutively, based on the facts of the case. The Sentencing Council’s Totality guideline provides courts with guidance on whether sentences should be served concurrently or consecutively. Where the individual is serving a determinate sentence and commits another offence after the original sentence was imposed, the new sentence will generally be consecutive to the original sentence.

It was announced in March 2020 that anyone using coronavirus to threaten emergency workers would face serious criminal charges punishable by up to 12 months in prison under the Assaults on Emergency Workers Offences Act 2018. HMPPS has since issued guidance to support staff in referring such cases to the police.