Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether any of the 2,500 extra prison staff announced in the Prison Safety and Reform white paper, published by her Department on 3 November 2016, will be allocated to privately-run prisons.

The planned recruitment of an extra 2,500 new prison officers relates to public sector prison staff, which will allow these prisons to implement the new staffing model outlined in the Prison Safety and Reform White Paper.

Private providers are required to maintain a sufficient number of staff, with the requisite level of skill and experience to ensure that the Prison is safe, secure and decent environment. We are engaging with private providers on how the new staffing model outlined in the Prison Safety and Reform White Paper will be implemented in private prisons.