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1714595

registered interest
date	29/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisons: Visits
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what the visit rates were for (1) male, and (2) female, public sector prisons in (a) 2019, (b) 2020, (c) 2021, (c) 2022, and (d) 2023.
tabling member printed	Lord Farmer
uin	HL4143
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2024 answer text <p>Visits are managed locally by each establishment and data is not routinely assured and reported nationally. Collating and assuring the data in the format requested would incur disproportionate cost.</p><p>His Majesty’s Prison &amp; Probation Service continue to promote the importance of offering different types of visits including family visits. We are aware that the Covid-19 Pandemic substantially impacted the numbers of face-to-face visits and stakeholders’ concerns over visitor numbers in some prisons being slow to return to pre-pandemic levels. There are a number of possible reasons for this including the introduction during the pandemic of additional ways in which families can stay in touch including the roll out of in-cell phones and secure video calls. Establishments have been working to provide a range of services to help prisoners develop or renew positive relationships. This includes using Official Prison Visitors, contracted family support workers, partnership work with external organisations such as New Bridge and the use of peer mentors.</p> answering member printed Lord Bellamy question first answered 13/05/2024 14:25:05 answering member 4941 label Biography information for Lord Bellamy
tabling member	4321 label Biography information for Lord Farmer

1714598

registered interest
date	29/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Alcoholic Drinks: Crime
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of sobriety tagging schemes.
tabling member printed	Baroness Jenkin of Kennington
uin	HL4148
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2024 answer text <p>In advance of legislating for the introduction of the Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement (AAMR) for community based sentences to tackle alcohol related offending, the Government contributed to funding for two pilots to ensure robust evaluation of the effectiveness of the measure. The pilots were carried out in London and in the North East of England and findings informed the introduction of AAMR in 2020. AAMR enables courts to impose an alcohol ban of up to 120 days on adult offenders who are not alcohol dependent, compliance is monitored using an alcohol tag.</p><p>Alcohol monitoring on licence was introduced in 2021 and enables probation to include an additional licence condition banning or restricting the consumption of alcohol, where a criminogenic need related to alcohol misuse is identified as an increase to risk. Funding has been allocated for evaluation of the processes, impact and value for money. A process and interim impact evaluation are expected to be published by the end of 2025. A full reoffending analysis and value-for-money assessment are expected by the end of 2026.</p><p>Evaluations published to date can be accessed via the links below:</p><p>MOPAC’s AAMR Final Impact Evaluation Report, <em>December 2020</em> - <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/aamr_final_impact_report_100521.pdf" target="_blank">aamr_final_impact_report_100521.pdf (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement: A review of process and performance from Year 2, <em>July 2018</em> - <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/aamr_final_process_performance_y2_report_final.pdf" target="_blank">aamr_final_process_performance_y2_report_final.pdf (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement The pan London roll out: A review of process and performance from year 1, <em>July 2017</em> - <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/annex_2_-_aamr_process_and_performance_report_2017.pdf" target="_blank">AAMR Interim Report (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement: South London Pilot Indicative Impact Report, <em>April 2017 </em>- <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/annex_1_-_aamr_early_impact_report_210417.pdf" target="_blank">Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>HNLY Pilot Process Evaluation Report, <em>October 2019</em> - <a href="https://www.northyorkshire-pfcc.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Evaluation-of-the-AAMR-tagging-pilot.pdf" target="_blank">Evaluation-of-the-AAMR-tagging-pilot.pdf (northyorkshire-pfcc.gov.uk).</a></p><p> </p><p>The AAMR pilot in the North-East focused on domestic abuse perpetrators, the process evaluation shows that 31% of wearers were convicted of a domestic violence offence. Compliance with the alcohol ban shows that the devices did not register a tamper or alcohol alert on 97.4% of the days worn. The impact evaluation (including for reoffending) is underway for this pilot and is also intended to be published.</p><p>The evaluations to date and published statistics have shown a strong uptake of alcohol monitoring by courts and probation. The number of individuals fitted with an alcohol monitoring (AM) device as at 31 March 2024 was 2,862, a 27% increase over the previous 12 months. There were 12,506 new alcohol monitoring orders imposed across England and Wales in the year ending 31 March 2024. Overall, 24,305 new alcohol monitoring orders have been imposed since their introduction against an ambition of 12,000 by 2025 and compliance with the alcohol ban has remained consistent at over 97% for the total of days monitored. <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/electronic-monitoring-statistics-publication-march-2024" target="_blank">Electronic Monitoring Statistics Publication, March 2024 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).</a></p> answering member printed Lord Bellamy grouped question UIN HL4149 question first answered 13/05/2024 11:21:10 answering member 4941 label Biography information for Lord Bellamy
tabling member	4229 label Biography information for Baroness Jenkin of Kennington

1714600

registered interest
date	29/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Alcoholic Drinks: Crime
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the success of sobriety tagging schemes, particularly for those convicted of serious assaults or domestic violence where alcohol was a factor.
tabling member printed	Baroness Jenkin of Kennington
uin	HL4149
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2024 answer text <p>In advance of legislating for the introduction of the Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement (AAMR) for community based sentences to tackle alcohol related offending, the Government contributed to funding for two pilots to ensure robust evaluation of the effectiveness of the measure. The pilots were carried out in London and in the North East of England and findings informed the introduction of AAMR in 2020. AAMR enables courts to impose an alcohol ban of up to 120 days on adult offenders who are not alcohol dependent, compliance is monitored using an alcohol tag.</p><p>Alcohol monitoring on licence was introduced in 2021 and enables probation to include an additional licence condition banning or restricting the consumption of alcohol, where a criminogenic need related to alcohol misuse is identified as an increase to risk. Funding has been allocated for evaluation of the processes, impact and value for money. A process and interim impact evaluation are expected to be published by the end of 2025. A full reoffending analysis and value-for-money assessment are expected by the end of 2026.</p><p>Evaluations published to date can be accessed via the links below:</p><p>MOPAC’s AAMR Final Impact Evaluation Report, <em>December 2020</em> - <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/aamr_final_impact_report_100521.pdf" target="_blank">aamr_final_impact_report_100521.pdf (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement: A review of process and performance from Year 2, <em>July 2018</em> - <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/aamr_final_process_performance_y2_report_final.pdf" target="_blank">aamr_final_process_performance_y2_report_final.pdf (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement The pan London roll out: A review of process and performance from year 1, <em>July 2017</em> - <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/annex_2_-_aamr_process_and_performance_report_2017.pdf" target="_blank">AAMR Interim Report (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement: South London Pilot Indicative Impact Report, <em>April 2017 </em>- <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/annex_1_-_aamr_early_impact_report_210417.pdf" target="_blank">Alcohol Abstinence Monitoring Requirement (london.gov.uk).</a></p><p>HNLY Pilot Process Evaluation Report, <em>October 2019</em> - <a href="https://www.northyorkshire-pfcc.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Evaluation-of-the-AAMR-tagging-pilot.pdf" target="_blank">Evaluation-of-the-AAMR-tagging-pilot.pdf (northyorkshire-pfcc.gov.uk).</a></p><p> </p><p>The AAMR pilot in the North-East focused on domestic abuse perpetrators, the process evaluation shows that 31% of wearers were convicted of a domestic violence offence. Compliance with the alcohol ban shows that the devices did not register a tamper or alcohol alert on 97.4% of the days worn. The impact evaluation (including for reoffending) is underway for this pilot and is also intended to be published.</p><p>The evaluations to date and published statistics have shown a strong uptake of alcohol monitoring by courts and probation. The number of individuals fitted with an alcohol monitoring (AM) device as at 31 March 2024 was 2,862, a 27% increase over the previous 12 months. There were 12,506 new alcohol monitoring orders imposed across England and Wales in the year ending 31 March 2024. Overall, 24,305 new alcohol monitoring orders have been imposed since their introduction against an ambition of 12,000 by 2025 and compliance with the alcohol ban has remained consistent at over 97% for the total of days monitored. <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/electronic-monitoring-statistics-publication-march-2024" target="_blank">Electronic Monitoring Statistics Publication, March 2024 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).</a></p> answering member printed Lord Bellamy grouped question UIN HL4148 question first answered 13/05/2024 11:21:10 answering member 4941 label Biography information for Lord Bellamy
tabling member	4229 label Biography information for Baroness Jenkin of Kennington

1714732

registered interest
date	29/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Community Orders
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of community service.
tabling member constituency	Newport West
tabling member printed	Ruth Jones
uin	24133
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/05/2024 answer text <p>There is persuasive evidence indicating that community sentences in general can be more effective for reducing reoffending than custodial sentences. The Department’s latest published reoffending statistics (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/proven-reoffending-statistics" target="_blank">Proven reoffending statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a>) show that 55% of those released from prison after serving a custodial sentence of less than twelve months were convicted for a proven offence in the following 12 months. This compares to 32% of those serving a court order (community sentence or suspended sentence order) or 24% of those serving a suspended sentence with requirements served in the community.</p><p>Community Payback completed over 4.7 million hours in 2023 undertaking work to improve communities, the environment and supporting charities. In 2023, Rapid Deployment pilots tackling anti-social behaviour hot spots has seen 8,809 hours of community payback completed and 509 different people involved and given its success this initiative is being rolled out to areas in all Probation regions.</p><p>A process evaluation by the Ministry of Justice of Unpaid Work commenced in 2022 to assess what works in the delivery of Unpaid Work. An impact and economic evaluation comparing the effectiveness of Unpaid Work to other punitive sentences in reducing reoffending will report in March 2025.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 09/05/2024 13:25:26 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4716 label Biography information for Ruth Jones

1714760

registered interest
date	29/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Restraint Techniques: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if his Department will end the use on children of (a) the inverted wrist hold and (b) other pain-inducing restraints.
tabling member constituency	Stockton North
tabling member printed	Alex Cunningham
uin	24034
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/05/2024 answer text <p>The syllabus for training staff in under-18 young offender institutions and the secure training centre in Managing and Minimising Physical Restraint (MMPR) focuses exclusively on behaviour management and restraint.</p><p>It is essential that staff are trained for every aspect of their role, including in techniques they may need to use to prevent serious physical harm to a child or adult. Staff will continue to be trained in the safe use of pain-inducing techniques, as part of a separate package of interventions for use only in situations where that is the only means of preventing serious physical harm.</p><p>Any response must be necessary, reasonable, and proportionate in view of the risk of harm which is present. All instances where a pain-inducing technique is used are subject to detailed scrutiny by on site MMPR Coordinators, as well as by members of the Independent Restraint Review Panel.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 02/05/2024 08:37:06 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4122 label Biography information for Alex Cunningham

1714074

registered interest
date	26/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	County Courts: Judgements
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he is taking steps to publish claimant data for County Court Judgments.
tabling member constituency	South Swindon
tabling member printed	Sir Robert Buckland
uin	23858
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/05/2024 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice recently held a consultation about including claimant names on the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines (the Register). We intend to publish a response to that consultation in due course. That response will set out whether the Government intends to bring forward legislation to allow for the publication of claimant names on the Register.</p> answering member constituency Finchley and Golders Green answering member printed Mike Freer question first answered 08/05/2024 10:35:43 answering member 4004 label Biography information for Mike Freer
tabling member	4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland

1714087

registered interest
date	26/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Cohabitation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to enable cohabiting couples to share financial and property rights.
tabling member constituency	Kingston upon Hull North
tabling member printed	Dame Diana Johnson
uin	23842
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/05/2024 answer text <p>The Government considers that its existing work underway on the law of marriage and the Law Commission’s work on financial provision on divorce must conclude before considering any change to the law in respect of the rights of cohabitants. This is because any new legal rights and obligations afforded to cohabitants would necessarily need to be considered against a baseline of rights afforded to married parties or civil partners.</p> answering member constituency Finchley and Golders Green answering member printed Mike Freer question first answered 08/05/2024 15:09:30 answering member 4004 label Biography information for Mike Freer
tabling member	1533 label Biography information for Dame Diana Johnson

1714166

registered interest
date	26/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisons: Drugs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of (a) drug use and (b) synthetic drug use in prisons.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	23903
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/05/2024 answer text <p>The latest information on random mandatory drug testing in prisons can be found in the HMPPS Annual Digest here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/hmpps-annual-digest-april-2022-to-march-2023" target="_blank">HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2022 to March 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a>.</p><p>All prisons have a zero-tolerance approach to drugs, and we are highly aware of the threat synthetic substances present. In response, His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) continue to develop capabilities to drug test prisoners who are suspected to have used, or are at risk of using, these dangerous substances. In addition, all prisons have been provided with access to forensic testing of items seized or found within the estate.</p><p>Our £100 million Security Investment Programme, aimed at reducing crime in prisons, including reducing the conveyance of illicit items such as drugs, was completed in March 2022. This investment delivered 75 additional X-ray body scanners resulting in full coverage across the closed adult male estate. Under this programme, all public sector sites have also been provided with next-generation drug trace detection machines. This technology enables prisons to detect attempts to convey drugs into prisons. The equipment is effective in identifying drugs that have been soaked onto letters, clothing and other items.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 08/05/2024 14:04:58 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1714167

registered interest
date	26/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisons: Drugs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has piloted a harm reduction approach to drug use in prisons.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	23904
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/05/2024 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice works closely with NHS England and the Department for Health and Social Care to ensure that all prisoners who need it have access to high-quality substance misuse treatment.</p><p>This includes:</p><ul><li>increasing the number of Incentivised Substance-Free Living Units from 25 in summer 2022 to 80 now. Incentivised Substance-Free Living Units are prison wings providing a dedicated, supportive environment for prisoners who want to live drug-free in prison. They provide additional support to prisoners struggling with addiction to engage with treatment, using regular drug testing alongside incentives to ensure prisoners stay drug free;</li><li>recruiting up to 50 Drug Strategy Leads in key prisons which will ensure prisons are recovery focused, bringing together health and security-focused activity. This builds on the £100 million already invested from our Security Investment Programme which aims to reduce crime in prisons and the conveyance of illicit substances;</li><li>rolling out nasal naloxone to prison staff, which is the lifesaving medication to reverse an opiate overdose.</li></ul> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 08/05/2024 14:05:54 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1714169

registered interest
date	26/04/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Offenders: Bail
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance is available to courts on the impact of bailing people to live at their home address.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	23905
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/05/2024 answer text <p>The Adult Court Bench Book provides guidance for magistrates who sit in the adult court dealing mainly with defendants aged 18 or over. The Bench Book covers bail and remand and indicates the considerations that must be taken on whether to bail or remand a defendant. If a bail application is made, the magistrates must satisfy themselves that they have been provided with all the relevant information to decide whether to bail or not, including that of accommodation.</p><p>The rollout of the Bail Information Service, which has received £53 million of funding until 2028, means that dedicated Bail Information Officers will provide courts with bail information reports which contain relevant and factual information to enable the court to reach an informed yet independent decision on whether bail should be granted to a defendant. This will include any recommendations on the suitability of their accommodation or whether alternatives need to be considered.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 08/05/2024 14:06:40 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell