Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to increase prison capacity.

We recognise that crowding can make it harder to deliver safe, stable regimes and places additional pressure on staff. Analysis published by the department shows that prisoners in crowded cells are more likely to be involved in assaults than those not in crowded conditions. That is why we continually monitor prison conditions and take places on and offline depending on safety, stability, staffing levels and maintenance needs.

As set out in the December 2024 10-Year Prison Capacity Strategy, we have committed to delivering an additional 14,000 prison places and aim to do so by 2031. We are investing £4.7 billion over the spending review period (2026/27 to 2029/30) towards the delivery of these additional prison places, and we have already delivered c.3,100 since taking office. Alongside increasing capacity at record rates, our Sentencing Act 2026 will place the prison population on a more sustainable footing and pave the way for further reforms.