Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June 2020 to Question 58798 on Prisoners' Release: Homelessness, what estimate he has made of how much funding will be required to support the provision of accommodation for all individuals released from prison who are at risk of homelessness after 26 June 2020.

The Ministry of Justice has secured up to £8.5 million to support individuals at risk of homelessness on their release from prison for up to eight weeks and help to move on into permanent accommodation. This scheme was originally due to run until 26^th June. We have recently undertaken a first review and, following this, have extended the scheme until 31 July.

This project will help ensure vulnerable ex-offenders at risk of homelessness will get the vital support they need to stay safe during the COVID-19 period and find suitable accommodation and continue their rehabilitation during the pandemic. This will help improve outcomes for ex-offenders and increase the chances of seeing fewer victims of crime in the future.