Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 6 September to Question 36597 on Onley Prison: Firearms, whether the firearm discovered was functional.

The firearm was found to be a starting pistol, however it is unclear whether it could be modified to achieve functionality. As stated in the answer of 6 September, no ammunition was found with the firearm.

It has not yet been discovered how the pistol was conveyed into the prison. In the immediate aftermath of the intelligence-led discovery of the weapon, specially trained Dedicated Search Teams were used to search areas of the prison. An investigation was commissioned by the Prison Group Director to establish how the pistol may have been conveyed into the prison and the Security, Order and Counter Terrorism Directorate supported the prison in assessing vulnerabilities and mitigating risks.