Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of personal protective equipment for prison staff during the covid-19 outbreak.

Personal protective equipment is critical to protect staff and those in our care where close contact is necessary and unavoidable. There is currently adequate stock and forward supply of PPE, in accordance with public health advice.

We have stock in the hundreds of thousands for aprons, coveralls, eye protection, pairs of gloves, respirator masks and fluid-resistant surgical masks, as well as hand sanitiser. However, we are making continued preparations and keeping demand for PPE under regular review as we move into the next phase of managing this outbreak.