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<p>The Ministry of Justice is committed to working with health partners to improve
the timeliness of transfers from prison to hospital under the Mental Health Act.
As stated in the Government’s response to the European Committee for the Prevention
of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment’s report, we recognise
that in some cases this currently takes far too long.</p><p>That is why last month
the Government published a draft Mental Health Bill which introduces a new statutory
time limit of 28-days for transfers from prisons to hospital. This time limit, together
with operational improvements, will help reduce unnecessary delays and ensure people
in the criminal justice system receive swift access to treatment.</p><p>The draft
Bill will also end the use of prison as a ‘place of safety’. This will end the practice
of courts diverting offenders or defendants requiring assessment and treatment in
an inpatient setting to prison when there are no hospital beds available, ensuring
vulnerable offenders are able to access the right support in the right environment.</p><p>The
draft Bill will now be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny.</p>
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