Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated annual cost of the new dual system which requires Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service to further review the Parole Board's recommendation for release of prisoners, including (1) the 21-day waiting period, and (2) the subsequent delay whilst the further confirmation is provided to the appropriate prison and probation staff for subsequent release.

In July 2019 changes were made to the Parole Board Rules to permit the Secretary of State for Justice or the prisoner to apply to the Parole Board for reconsideration of a decision either to release or not release a parole-eligible prisoner. The changes mean that a decision is not final but only provisional for 21 days after the decision is first issued, to allow for the Secretary of State or the prisoner to apply for reconsideration, where they consider that the decision is irrational or was reached in a procedurally-flawed manner. The availability of the reconsideration mechanism has not introduced significant delays or associated additional costs to the release process. HMPPS does not suspend planning for the release of these prisoners during the reconsideration period.

The Public Protection Group, a part of HMPPS, set up a team to administer the review of Parole Board release decisions following the introduction of the reconsideration mechanism. The team reviews around 1,700 decisions a year, the annual cost of the team is c£580k.