Prisons: Crimes of Violence

(asked on 18th November 2014) - View Source

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's press release of 16 November 2014 entitled Crackdown on violence in prisons, what estimate he has made of the number of additional court appearances which will result from the implementation of the joint protocol on violence in prisons.


Answered by
Andrew Selous Portrait
Andrew Selous
Second Church Estates Commissioner
This question was answered on 24th November 2014

Any crime committed in prison is liable to be reported to the police depending on the aggravating and mitigating factors present and many offences committed in prison are already investigated by the police. The recently announced protocol on appropriate handling of crimes in prison sets out those crimes within prisons, including violent crimes, which must be reported by establishments to the police for consideration for investigation. It will be published before the end of the financial year following final consultation. The NOMS Unions are supportive of the protocol.

Potential costs arising from any increase in the number of serious crimes that will now be dealt with by way of the Criminal Justice System rather than the prison disciplinary system will depend on a number of factors and the costs are expected to be covered through prioritising within existing Police and Departmental budgets for handling crime.

The aim of the protocol is to strengthen existing policy and requirements on the reporting of crime. It is not intended to remove the internal prison adjudication system which can still be a cost effective means of dealing with minor crime in prison. We do not anticipate large numbers of additional crimes being processed through the courts as a result of this protocol. Rather, the protocol will be used to ensure that in those instances where a serious assault or other serious crime occurs there is greater consistency across prison, police and CPS areas in how it is dealt with so that this type of crime can be targeted. The protocol is subject to annual evaluation and review by the signatories.

Tackling violence in prisons is a major priority of this Government and appropriate steps are being taken to manage increased levels of violence within a complex and challenging prison population. We will be issuing new guidance on managing violence early next year. The impact of the overall package of violence management measures will be monitored closely in the coming year. Consultation on all aspects of the revised violence management policy is ongoing. Trade Unions will be included in this consultation.

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