Written questions by Ribeiro-Addy.

How Serco performed against the key performance indicators at the most recent performance review on their HMP & YOI Fosse Way (Leicester) contract.

HM Prison & Probation Service’s Annual Prison Performance Ratings are based on a range of indicators. The latest ratings cover the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. As a newly opened prison (June 2023), HMP Fosse Way did not form part of the latest ratings but will be included in future publications. HMP Ashfield was rated at level 3 (‘Good performance’).

Pursuant to the Answer of 8 May 2025 to Question 49785 on Electronic Tagging: Standards; which of the key performance indicators Serco failed to meet; and how Serco performed against the remaining key performance indicators.

Serco failed to meet the expected requirement for the following key performance indicators: KPIs 1-7, 9-11 and KPI 14. KPI 8 is N/AFor KPIs 12 and 13, Serco performed at 100%.

Pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2025 to Question 46823, on Electronic Tagging: Standards, what estimate she has made of the number of offenders who were not tagged because the Probation Service held an incorrect address for them in the last two years.

The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost due to data quality issues.

Pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2025 to Question 46823, on Electronic Tagging: Standards: what recent estimate she has made of the number of offenders not tagged as a result of the Probation Service holding an incorrect address for the offender in each of the last five years.

The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2025 to Question 46825 on Electronic Tagging: Standards, how Serco has performed against the 14 key performance indicators at the most recent performance review.

Serco has failed to meet its target performance on 11 of 14 of its KPIs. The Department continues to hold Serco to account for its failings and will not hesitate to levy contractual penalties for underperformance.

How many people released on licence were electronically tagged as part of a home detention curfew programme in the most recent period for which data is available.

The number of prisoners released on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) where a tag had not been fitted for the entirety of their monitoring period can be found in the attached at Annex A.All prisoners released on HDC are subject to a statutory electronically monitored curfew. The requested information is routinely published as part of the department’s Offender Management Statistics Quarterly publication. The most recent published data (covering the period October to December 2024) can be found in Table 3_Q_10 here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6807c23692d50839757a61b7/prison-releases-Oct-to-Dec-2024.ods.’

What assessment she had made of the adequacy of Serco's performance; and if she will undertake a review of it's electronic tagging contract.

Serco’s performance has been unacceptable, and we will not hesitate to impose further penalties if our high-performance targets are not met and performance does not improve. There are regular meetings between the Minister for Prisons and Probation and the CEO of Serco to impress upon him the need for improvement.The contract contains strict time bound service levels within which all equipment installations for all electronic monitoring orders must take place. In addition, the small number of national security cases and those requiring more intensive monitoring plus Domestic Abuse Perpetrators on Licence and those with Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPO) are prioritised. Electronic monitoring orders are identified by order type and terms such as priority one critical offenders and people classified as likely to offend are not used.

What recent assessment she has made of the average time taken for Serco to tag (a) priority one critical offenders and (b) people classified as likely to offend.

Serco’s performance has been unacceptable, and we will not hesitate to impose further penalties if our high-performance targets are not met and performance does not improve. There are regular meetings between the Minister for Prisons and Probation and the CEO of Serco to impress upon him the need for improvement.The contract contains strict time bound service levels within which all equipment installations for all electronic monitoring orders must take place. In addition, the small number of national security cases and those requiring more intensive monitoring plus Domestic Abuse Perpetrators on Licence and those with Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPO) are prioritised. Electronic monitoring orders are identified by order type and terms such as priority one critical offenders and people classified as likely to offend are not used.

How many prisoners released on home curfew were not tagged for the entirety of their monitoring period in the most recent period for which data is available.

The number of prisoners released on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) where a tag had not been fitted for the entirety of their monitoring period can be found in the attached at Annex A.All prisoners released on HDC are subject to a statutory electronically monitored curfew. The requested information is routinely published as part of the department’s Offender Management Statistics Quarterly publication. The most recent published data (covering the period October to December 2024) can be found in Table 3_Q_10 here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6807c23692d50839757a61b7/prison-releases-Oct-to-Dec-2024.ods.’

What steps her Department is taking to address the backlog in fitting offenders with electronic monitoring tags.

Serco’s performance has been unacceptable, and we will not hesitate to impose further penalties if our high-performance targets are not met and performance does not improve. There are regular meetings between the Minister for Prisons and Probation and the CEO of Serco to impress upon him the need for improvement.The contract contains strict time bound service levels within which all equipment installations for all electronic monitoring orders must take place. In addition, the small number of national security cases and those requiring more intensive monitoring plus Domestic Abuse Perpetrators on Licence and those with Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPO) are prioritised. Electronic monitoring orders are identified by order type and terms such as priority one critical offenders and people classified as likely to offend are not used.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the (a) recruitment and (b) vetting process for people employed to tag offenders.

During the procurement of the Field and Monitoring Service contract, all suppliers were required to provide details of their vetting, staff recruitment, training and retention processes and these were assessed as part of the evaluation process. As with all of our contracts, we have robust mechanisms in place to hold Serco to account, including provisions to address under-performance. We have set out that Serco must deliver robust training that they are continually reviewing it for areas of improvementThe contract outlines the ongoing requirements Serco staff must meet in terms of pre-employment checks, additional vetting and specific national security vetting clearance.There are 14 Key Performance Indicators within the Field and Monitoring Service contract held by Serco. Detailed information on the 14 Key Performance Indicators is available on Contracts Finders under Schedule 3 of the contract: Electronic Monitoring Field and Monitoring Service (FMS) - Contracts Finder.

What recent estimate she has made of the number of offenders not tagged as a result of the Probation Service holding an incorrect address for the offender.

To establish the number of people who were not tagged because the probation service held and provided an incorrect address to the EM provider would require a trawl through thousands of individual case records held on prison and probation systems. Such information could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost and is therefore not available.The probation service audit cases where an individual has not received a tag through a weekly data report. Where incorrect addresses are identified, through discussion with EMS they are rectified as soon as possible. Serco must make a minimum of two attempts to install a tag. If both visits result in a “no show” or if the address held by Serco is incorrect, Serco is required to send a non-compliance notification to the offender’s probation officer, who will then make a decision on what enforcement action is appropriate. This can include a return to court or custody if an offender has moved address without telling their probation officer or if they have breached their licence conditions.

What are the performance indicators agreed with Serco as part of the contract to provide electronic monitoring services.

During the procurement of the Field and Monitoring Service contract, all suppliers were required to provide details of their vetting, staff recruitment, training and retention processes and these were assessed as part of the evaluation process. As with all of our contracts, we have robust mechanisms in place to hold Serco to account, including provisions to address under-performance. We have set out that Serco must deliver robust training that they are continually reviewing it for areas of improvementThe contract outlines the ongoing requirements Serco staff must meet in terms of pre-employment checks, additional vetting and specific national security vetting clearance.There are 14 Key Performance Indicators within the Field and Monitoring Service contract held by Serco. Detailed information on the 14 Key Performance Indicators is available on Contracts Finders under Schedule 3 of the contract: Electronic Monitoring Field and Monitoring Service (FMS) - Contracts Finder.

What steps she is taking to increase awareness of legal aid services for people entering the asylum process.

The Ministry of Justice has undertaken a comprehensive review of civil legal aid and recently concluded a consultation on uplifts to housing & debt and immigration & asylum legal aid fees, which when implemented, would inject an additional £20 million into the sector each year. We are currently reviewing consultation responses and will publish the Government’s response in due course.Migrant Help will signpost users to the Legal Aid Agency. Legal aid applicants can use the ‘Find a legal aid adviser’ search tool on GOV.UK to access a list of legal aid solicitors near them: Find a legal aid adviser or family mediator (justice.gov.uk). They can also contact the Civil Legal Advice Helpline, who will provide contact details for legal aid providers.

What steps she is taking to increase access to legal aid for people entering the asylum process.

The Ministry of Justice has undertaken a comprehensive review of civil legal aid and recently concluded a consultation on uplifts to housing & debt and immigration & asylum legal aid fees, which when implemented, would inject an additional £20 million into the sector each year. We are currently reviewing consultation responses and will publish the Government’s response in due course.Migrant Help will signpost users to the Legal Aid Agency. Legal aid applicants can use the ‘Find a legal aid adviser’ search tool on GOV.UK to access a list of legal aid solicitors near them: Find a legal aid adviser or family mediator (justice.gov.uk). They can also contact the Civil Legal Advice Helpline, who will provide contact details for legal aid providers.

What steps her Department is taking to support prisoners leaving prisons with drug addiction.

The Ministry of Justice works closely with the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England to ensure that people leaving prison with a drug or alcohol problem stay in treatment and can get the support they need to recover from addiction.To support prison leavers to continue their recovery journey in the community, we have Health and Justice Partnership Coordinators nationwide, who strengthen links between prisons, probation and treatment providers. We also have secure laptops across the prison estate to enable prisoners to meet with community treatment providers virtually, prior to release, and the Probation Notification Actioning Project makes probation aware of prison leavers who have been referred to community treatment, so they can support them to engage with treatment.We have also established the new Drug and Alcohol Recovery Expert Panel, where panel members with wide-ranging expertise will help to identify ways to strengthen our approach.

What the average prison sentence is for cannabis possession offences.

The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the average sentence for cannabis possession offences, from 2010 to 2024, in the Outcomes by Offence data tool: June 2024.

If she will make an estimate of the annual cost of imprisonment due to cannabis-related offences.

As at 31 December 2024, the number of prisoners with cannabis-related offences recorded as their main offence was 1,073. This figure only includes cases where a cannabis offence (offence which directly involves and specifies cannabis) was recorded as the main offence and will cover prisoners held for varying lengths depending on their sentence.The overall average annual cost for keeping an individual in a prison is £51,108, which is taken from the latest published Prison Unit Cost statistics for 2022-23.

What estimate her Department has made of the proportion of magistrates' court cases that involved cannabis possession in the last 12 months; and if she will make an estimate of the potential impact of legalising cannabis possession on the cost of these court cases.

The latest published data shows that 1.0% of magistrates’ courts proceedings in the year to June 2024 (12,429 defendants) in England and Wales were for cannabis possession offences. (Source: Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: June 2024 - GOV.UK). Equivalent published data for the calendar year 2024 will be available on 15 May 2025. The number of proceedings is presented on a principal offence basis, this means that more serious offences accompanied by an additional cannabis possession offence will not be included in this number.The estimated sitting day cost to HMCTS for those cases is c. £1 million.

Whether her Department holds data on the (a) number of cases of child sexual assault brought forward at family court in the last five years and (b) proportion of those cases (i) upheld and (ii) dismissed.

Sexual offences, including child sexual assault, are heard in the criminal courts. In some cases, the family courts will hear allegations of sexual abuse in public and private law cases but while this information would be recorded in case files it is not centrally recorded.In order to provide this information, the Ministry of Justice would need to examine multiple individual case files. In 2023 for example (the last full year for which data is available) over 66,000 public and private law cases started in the family courts which involved over 104,000 children.(1)The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data concerning defendants dealt with at criminal courts by detailed offence codes as part of the Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly series. The “outcome by offences” tool allows users to select offence descriptions as set out in legislation and the latest data is available to June 2024 - Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: June 2024 - GOV.UK.(1) Family_Court_Tables__Jul-Sep_2024_.ods