Contributions
510 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsThe right hon. Member is right that prison officers do an outstanding job. I want to take the opportunity to commend the work of prison officers up and down this country. Eighty…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsMy hon. Friend is absolutely right that we need to work hard to address these issues, but if there were a simple solution, the previous Administration would have waved that magic…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. We inherited a prison estate that was 99.7% full. The police and the courts were in danger of not being able to lock people up. That was an…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsI thank the right hon. Gentleman for the positive meeting I had recently with him, officials and the local business. The answer to his question is that both those things are…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsI would be happy to meet my hon. Friend; if he could drop me a note to remind me, I will do that. This week, the Prisons Minister is meeting officials from the Prison Officers…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsThe security and safety of prisoners and prison officers is very important. The Prisons Minister and the Under-Secretary of State for Justice, my hon. Friend the Member for…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsActions are being taken and things are being done. I have mentioned the issues around windows, and netting and bars, but frankly this is a security issue. We are up against…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsAs I have already said, it is very important that we tackle drug dependency in prisons. The fact that we now have a little bit more space in prisons allows more work to go on…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsThe residents of Broxbourne will be well aware that for 14 years, the Government that the hon. Gentleman supported failed to tackle this problem. This Government are rolling up…14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsI think everybody agrees that that policy was barking.14 Jan 2025HANSARDDrones: High-security PrisonsAny lessons learned need to be applied across the United Kingdom, and that will happen. We need to work with our Five Eyes partners to ensure that the very best action is taken.…14 Jan 2025HANSARDYouth Justice Board ReviewI am pleased to announce the review of the Youth Justice Board. This review is being conducted as part of the public bodies review programme, which aims to ensure that public…18 Dec 2024HANSARDPrison MaintenanceClearly, issues such as that need to be dealt with. Staff at His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service are doing their utmost to try to tackle those issues, but we will redouble…10 Dec 2024HANSARDPrison MaintenanceThe previous Government paused work on essential maintenance, which has added to the problems we are now dealing with. My hon. Friend is right to say that all options need to be…10 Dec 2024HANSARDPrison MaintenanceMy hon. Friend is right to ask this question. Under the previous Government, a process was already under way to put in place new contracts for prison maintenance. We need to make…10 Dec 2024HANSARDReducing ReoffendingSeveral of the things that I have mentioned already are designed to do exactly that, and we recognise exactly what the hon. Gentleman says. On the SDS40 scheme, prison and…10 Dec 2024HANSARDTopical QuestionsOne of the very first actions of the Government was to accept the Prison Service pay review body’s independent recommendations in full, delivering a pay increase of 5% for prison…10 Dec 2024HANSARDReducing ReoffendingI very much welcome the work that Weston College does in prisons. We are also developing our training offer for employers in areas such as rail tracks and construction, and…10 Dec 2024HANSARDTopical QuestionsAs I said in answer to an earlier question from my hon. Friend the Member for Newport East (Jessica Morden), HMP Parc is receiving a lot of attention at the moment. The Minister…10 Dec 2024HANSARDTopical QuestionsI do not think now is the time to consider that.10 Dec 2024