Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison wings closed (a) permanently and (b) temporarily due to staff shortages in each year since 2010.

Since 2010, there have been no permanent reductions in prison capacity due solely to staff shortages.

Alongside issues such as safety, decency, and stability, staffing levels have been one factor in decisions to temporarily close wings between 2010-2022, although decisions during this period cannot be attributed solely or principally to staffing levels. All wings temporarily closed during this period have been returned to use.

In May 2022, HMPPS introduced a Strategic Enhanced Resourcing Support process to authorise capacity reductions due to staffing levels where other mitigations are insufficient. Since the introduction of the process there have been a total of 6 temporary prison wing closures across 4 prisons (HMPs Wayland, Bullingdon, Woodhill and Swaleside) due to stability concerns linked to acute resourcing issues. At present, 2 wing closures remain in place at HMPs Woodhill and Swaleside.