Prisons - All Types

Written Question

Prisons: Drugs

Tuesday 30th April 2024

Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of inmates in prisons were drug tested at least once in (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

All prisons have a zero-tolerance approach to drugs. Our drug testing contract also enables us to deliver key commitments in the Cross-Government Drug Strategy such as: testing of offenders who receive a Drug Rehabilitation Requirement, the pilot of Intensive Supervision Courts and increased flexibility to test for a broader range of drugs. In addition, all prisons have been provided with access to forensic testing of items seized or found within the estate.

Our £100 million Security Investment Programme completed in March 2022 and delivered 75 additional X-ray body scanners, supplying full coverage across the closed male estate. We have also installed 84 X-ray baggage scanners at 49 sites, drug detection machines and metal detection archways. Furthermore, we are taking steps to support individuals with substance misuse issues in prison. We have dramatically increased the number of incentivised substance-free living units (ISFLs), where prisoners commit to living drug-free with incentives and regular testing. 80 prisons now have an ISFL, up from 25 in summer 2022.

Written Question

Prison Officers: Vacancies

Tuesday 30th April 2024

Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many vacancies there were for band 3 prison officers in the Long Term High Security Estate - South at the start of each year from 2017 to 2023.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Following a period of staffing challenges after the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen a substantial improvement in the national staffing picture within prisons. The number of Band 3-5 prison officers has increased by 1,634 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) between December 2022 - 2023, and resignation rates have fallen over the same period. This is the result of significant efforts across the agency, including substantial increases in pay for staff and launching our first-ever nationwide advertising campaign.

Table One below shows the number of indicative vacancies for Band 3 Prison Officers in the Long Term & High Security Estate (for prisons in the South) for January 2018, January 2019, January 2020, January 2021, January 2022 and January 2023. Data is not held for the period January 2017 and has not been provided.

In reality, many establishments will routinely sit marginally below their Target Staffing level due to normal attrition and time to hire and so we would not expect establishments to run consistently at 100% staffing.

Where prisons are not at their Target Staffing level, these are routinely supplemented (e.g., by using Payment Plus, a form of overtime) which is not accounted for in the indicative vacancy data provided. Use of detached duty, a long-standing mechanism to deploy staff from one prison or region to support another, is also not reflected in the data.

Table One: Total Band 3 Prison Officer Indicative Vacancies across Long Term & High Security Estate (LTHSE) South, January 2018 to January 2023

Month	Indicative vacancies (FTE)
Jan-18	104
Jan-19	14
Jan-20	62
Jan-21	86
Jan-22	127
Jan-23	323

Notes

All data is taken from Workforce Planning Tool returns and show the average position across January for each year, adjusted for joiners and leavers in the month.
Workforce Planning Tool returns are manually completed by Prisons each month and, as with any manual returns, are subject to human error.
Data shows average resource across the month, adjusted for joiners and leavers in the month.
The Long Term & High Security Estate South includes: Belmarsh, Isle of Wight, Long Lartin, Swaleside, Whitemoor and Woodhill.
Indicative vacancies are the difference between Target Staffing levels and Staff in Post at an individual establishment level. Where Staff in Post (FTE) exceeds Target Staffing (FTE) for an establishment, the number of indicative vacancies has been shown as 0 FTE. Indicative vacancies have been summed across establishments to give the number of indicative vacancies for LTHSE South.
Target Staffing level is the number of staff required to run an optimal regime in each prison. This level is greater than the minimum number of staff required for a prison to operate safely, and includes allowances for staff taking leave, being off sick or being on training.
The Target Staffing Figures are set on a site-specific basis and vary in size. Over the reporting period in question, Target Staffing levels for the LTHSE estate has increased which in part explains the increase in vacancies.
Band 3 Prison Officers include 'Prison Officer - Band 3' and 'Prison Officer - Youth Justice Worker - Band 3'.
Target Staffing levels are established based on a 39-hour working week. Staff in Post (FTE) is set at 1.0 FTE for those on a 39-hour contract / 1.05 FTE for those on a 41-hour contract and 0.95 FTE for those on a 37-hour contract.
Target Staffing levels cannot be used to directly calculate vacancies due to the discretion governors have to change establishment level staffing requirements through Governors' Freedoms. As a result, the Ministry of Justice does not regularly present vacancy data and the data presented should be treated with caution.
Staff in Post data used to calculate an indicative number of vacancies does not take into account those on long-term absences (e.g. career breaks / loans / secondments / agency staff or other forms of overtime).
Where prisons are not at their Target Staffing level, these are routinely supplemented (e.g., by using Payment Plus, a form of overtime) which is not accounted for in the indicative vacancy data provided. Use of detached duty, a long-standing mechanism to deploy staff from one prison or region to support another, is also not reflected in the data.

Lords Chamber
Indeterminate Sentences - Mon 29 Apr 2024
Scotland Office

Mentions:
1: Lord Hastings of Scarisbrick (XB - Life peer) In the past 10 years I have visited 73 prisons up and down the UK and met hundreds of IPP people inside - Speech Link

Bill Documents
29 Apr 2024 - Amendment Paper
Notices of Amendments as at 29 April 2024
Criminal Justice Bill 2023-24

Found: inspectorate must conduct the duties specified in new section 5A(5D) of the Prisons Act 1952

Departmental Publication (Guidance and Regulation)
Home Office

Apr. 29 2024

Source Page: Rwanda: country policy and information notes
Document: (PDF)

Found: have improved considerably… Allegations of torture and ill -treatment in official civilian prisons

Departmental Publication (Guidance and Regulation)
Home Office

Apr. 29 2024

Source Page: Rwanda: country policy and information notes
Document: (PDF)

Found: refugee camps, prisons, police custody, psychiatric hospita ls. 3.

Departmental Publication (Guidance and Regulation)
Home Office

Apr. 29 2024

Source Page: Rwanda: country policy and information notes
Document: (PDF)

Found: ‘Law Number 38/2006 of 25/09/2006 Establishing and Determining The Organisation of The National Prisons

Written Question

Homicide: Reoffenders

Monday 29th April 2024

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the reoffending rate was for people convicted of murder in each year since 2005.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Between 2011/12 and 2021/22, the overall proven reoffending rate decreased from 31.3% to 25.2%. As shown in the attached table, the most recent data shows that reoffending rates for both murderers and rapists are at their lowest levels since 2005. In particular, the proportion of rapists who reoffend has fallen from 10.2% in 2005/06 to 5.3% in 2021/22.

We are taking action to drive down the reoffending rate for all offenders by investing in a wide range of rehabilitative interventions to get them into skills training, work, and stable accommodation. Since 2021, we’ve rolled out Employment Hubs and Prison Employment Leads in all resettlement prisons and are delivering our temporary accommodation service for all prisoners at risk of homelessness.

The full information requested can be found in the attached table.

Written Question