Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's publication entitled Electronic Monitoring: expansion and full service business case' published on 7 November 2023, what estimate he has made of the whole life cost of the chosen electronic monitoring future service delivery model.

The estimated whole-life cost of designing, planning, implementing, and operating the Electronic Monitoring Future Service proposed in the Full Business Case over its whole life is £857.6M. This includes costs from the beginning of the Programme in 2021/2022 through to the end of the new contracts in 2032/2033 including a potential 2-year extension.

Where electronic monitoring can support an individual to remain in the community to serve their sentence or on court bail, it provides a cheaper alternative to prison. Electronic monitoring can also be used to support a robust community sentence as an alternative to a short custodial sentence. There is persuasive evidence that suspended and community sentences are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending and rehabilitating offenders.