Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of equipping prison staff with PAVA incapacitant spray on the (a) principle of explain or reform and (b) public sector equality duty.

PAVA is intended to protect staff and prisoners in very serious assaults. Safe implementation of PAVA use is accompanied by clear and explicit guidance ensuring staff are confident as to when PAVA spray should be used. Staff can use the PAVA spray where there is serious violence or an imminent or perceived risk of it, and there is an immediate need to create a safe and protective environment.

During the pilot in 4 prisons in 2018 an Equality Impact Assessment was produced in line with HMPPS’s public sector equality duty. The national rollout of PAVA will be evaluated, the scope of which has been expanded to look at Use of Force as a whole to provide insight and learning and inform our practice. We are taking steps to better understand potential causes of disproportionality and identify appropriate actions to address them, applying the explain or reform principle where appropriate.