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<p>While I cannot comment on individual cases, I would like to reassure The hon. Member
for West Lancashire, Rosie Cooper MP, and the prison officer involved that assaults
on our hard-working staff will never be tolerated. Prisoners can expect to face sanctions
and, for serious assaults, be investigated by the police. The Assaults on Emergency
Workers (Offences) Act 2018 received Royal Assent on 13 September 2018. This doubles
the maximum sentence for an assault on an emergency worker, including prison officers,
that a criminal court may impose.</p><p> </p><p>Alongside our work with the police
and CPS to prosecute such offences, to protect our prison staff we have invested in
5,600 body-worn cameras and are rolling out rigid-bar handcuffs. Early next year we
will begin to equip every prison officer in the adult male prison estate with incapacitant
spray – PAVA. PAVA can help to prevent serious harm to staff and prisoners alike,
as well as being a tool to persuade prisoners in the act of violence to stop. Only
prisons who have rolled out the key worker scheme – which is vital in building relationships
between offenders and staff – will get PAVA. It will be a crucial step in our efforts
to help reduce serious harm in prisons.</p>
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