Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has plans to increase the number of prison officers above the levels as outlined in HM Prison and Probation Service workforce quarterly: June 2019; and what his Department's target is for the number of prison officers to be in post by 30 June 2020.

Our hard-working officers play a crucial role in keeping prisons safe and transforming offenders’ lives, and ultimately make sure the public is protected. We have recruited more than 4,700 additional prison officers since October 2016 and staffing levels are now at their highest since 2012. We will continue to recruit officers to ensure safe and decent prisons.