Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) prisoners and (b) prison staff have been tested for covid-19 to date.

On 24 April, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced the rollout of COVID-19 testing for all essential workers and symptomatic members of their household, including prison staff, those working in Approved Premises (APs) and probation staff (including private sector service providers) in England. We have referred over 3,000 HMPPS staff for testing to date.

In Wales, testing for prison, AP and probation staff and symptomatic members of their household is being delivered through local resilience forum arrangements and through Local Health Boards.

For prisoners, tests will be conducted on symptomatic prisoners on site. The testing capacity and availability can vary between establishments, depending on local circumstances at the time.