Written questions by Paul.

What recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact transgender prison policies on the (a) safety, (b) dignity and (c) privacy of biologically female prisoners.

Prior to any placement, a risk assessment would be carried out by a multidisciplinary panel chaired by a specially trained senior prison manager, with senior staff from the HMPPS Womens Group including a psychologist. Assessments take account of all known risks posed by an individual, based on a comprehensive range of factors, together with the potential impact on other prisoners.This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous Government. No transgender women have been moved into the general women’s estate, including at HMP Downview, since 4 July 2024. We are reviewing the policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will set out any changes to our approach in due course.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 May 2025 to Question 52148 on HMP/YOI Downview: Transgender People, whether procedures used to assess the risk posed by transgender prisoners housed on E Wing of HMP Downview include specific consideration of the vulnerability or trauma histories of the women housed there.

Prior to any placement, a risk assessment would be carried out by a multidisciplinary panel chaired by a specially trained senior prison manager, with senior staff from the HMPPS Womens Group including a psychologist. Assessments take account of all known risks posed by an individual, based on a comprehensive range of factors, together with the potential impact on other prisoners.This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous Government. No transgender women have been moved into the general women’s estate, including at HMP Downview, since 4 July 2024. We are reviewing the policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will set out any changes to our approach in due course.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 May 2025 to Question 52148 on HMP/YOI Downview: Transgender People, what procedures are used to assess the risk posed by transgender prisoners housed on E Wing of HMP Downview before allowing them access to the general women’s estate.

Prior to any placement, a risk assessment would be carried out by a multidisciplinary panel chaired by a specially trained senior prison manager, with senior staff from the HMPPS Womens Group including a psychologist. Assessments take account of all known risks posed by an individual, based on a comprehensive range of factors, together with the potential impact on other prisoners.This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous Government. No transgender women have been moved into the general women’s estate, including at HMP Downview, since 4 July 2024. We are reviewing the policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will set out any changes to our approach in due course.

What is the process for authorising the approval of the transfer of a biological male prisoner into the female prison estate.

There are currently seven biological male prisoners at HMP Downview and all of them are on E Wing, which is a transgender only facility.No transgender women who retain their birth genitalia, and/or have any history of sexual or violent offences, can be held in the general women’s estate unless an exemption is granted by a Minister.  The current Government has not moved any transgender women into the general women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing the policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will set out any changes to our approach in due course.

How many biologically male prisoners have been placed at HMP Downview since 4 July 2024.

There are currently seven biological male prisoners at HMP Downview and all of them are on E Wing, which is a transgender only facility.No transgender women who retain their birth genitalia, and/or have any history of sexual or violent offences, can be held in the general women’s estate unless an exemption is granted by a Minister.  The current Government has not moved any transgender women into the general women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing the policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will set out any changes to our approach in due course.

How many biological males are held in women's prisons.

No transgender women who retain their birth genitalia, or have any history of sexual or violent offences, can be held in the general women’s estate unless an exemption is granted by a Minister.The number of transgender women prisoners in the general women's estate is in the low single figures.This is as a result of decisions taken by past Justice Secretaries, and the current Government has not moved any transgender women into the general women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing transgender prisoner policy following the recent Supreme Court ruling. We will ensure that we are fully compliant with this ruling, which has brought long overdue and much needed clarity to this question.

On what date the transfer of Joanna Rowland-Stuart to HMP Downview was authorised by her Department; and what the authorisation process was.

We do not provide information that includes the personal details of individuals.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 May 2025 to Question 50011 on HMP/YOI Downview: Transgender People, when the seven male prisoners held at HMP Downview will be moved to the men's prison estate; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure the (a) safety, (b) privacy and (c) dignity of female prisoners held in HMP Downview.

This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous government and have not moved any transgender women into the women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing transgender prisoner policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will set out any changes to our approach in due course.E Wing prisoners are held separately to other prisoners at HMP Downview. They cannot be given any access to the general women's estate in the prison unless risk-assessed as being safe to do so. If they are given access, this will be directly supervised by staff.

How many biologically male prisoners are held at HMP Downview.

As of 1 May 2025, there were 7 transgender women held on E Wing. Other than on E Wing, there were no transgender women held in HMP Downview. The figures are compiled from local operational data and are therefore not directly comparable with official statistics on transgender prisoners covering the whole estate.This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous Government and has not moved any transgender women into the women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing transgender prisoner policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will be able to say more about this in due course.

How many biological male prisoners are held in E Wing in HMP Downview.

As of 1 May 2025, there were 7 transgender women held on E Wing. Other than on E Wing, there were no transgender women held in HMP Downview. The figures are compiled from local operational data and are therefore not directly comparable with official statistics on transgender prisoners covering the whole estate.This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous Government and has not moved any transgender women into the women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing transgender prisoner policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will be able to say more about this in due course.

When biological male prisoners at HMP Downview will be transferred to male prisons.

As of 1 May 2025, there were 7 transgender women held on E Wing. Other than on E Wing, there were no transgender women held in HMP Downview. The figures are compiled from local operational data and are therefore not directly comparable with official statistics on transgender prisoners covering the whole estate.This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous Government and has not moved any transgender women into the women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing transgender prisoner policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will be able to say more about this in due course.

Whether she plans to stop biological males being housed in E wing at HMP Downview.

As of 1 May 2025, there were 7 transgender women held on E Wing. Other than on E Wing, there were no transgender women held in HMP Downview. The figures are compiled from local operational data and are therefore not directly comparable with official statistics on transgender prisoners covering the whole estate.This Government inherited the policy regarding allocation of transgender prisoners from the previous Government and has not moved any transgender women into the women’s estate since taking office.We are reviewing transgender prisoner policy in light of the Supreme Court ruling and will be able to say more about this in due course.

With reference to the HMPPS Offender Equalities Annual Report 2023-2024, published on 28 November 2024, how many of the 50 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as female were convicted of a sexual offence.

Of the 245 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as male (i.e. those who now identify as women, non-binary or gender-fluid) on 31 March 2024, 151 were convicted of a sexual offence. This includes both contact and non-contact sexual offences. Offence data was not available for 1 individual.Of the 50 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as female on 31 March 2024, the number convicted of a sexual offence is five or fewer. We do not provide exact data for such small sample sizes as it risks identification of individuals. This approach is in line with our standards on data disclosure.

With reference to the HMPPS Offender Equalities Annual Report 2023-2024, published on 28 November 2024, how many of the 245 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as male were convicted of a sexual offence.

Of the 245 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as male (i.e. those who now identify as women, non-binary or gender-fluid) on 31 March 2024, 151 were convicted of a sexual offence. This includes both contact and non-contact sexual offences. Offence data was not available for 1 individual.Of the 50 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as female on 31 March 2024, the number convicted of a sexual offence is five or fewer. We do not provide exact data for such small sample sizes as it risks identification of individuals. This approach is in line with our standards on data disclosure.

What recent progress she has made on progressing prisoners who remain in custody on Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences and who have served their minimum term towards release from incarceration.

This Government is focused, as a matter of urgency, on ensuring that all serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) prisoners have the opportunity to reduce their risk, via effective and deliverable sentence plans, as well as supporting them to engage fully with those plans. We will shortly be publishing a refreshed IPP Action Plan, that is being worked on and will be delivered by very senior officials in HM Prison and Probation Service. More broadly, we continue to focus on delivering good education, training and work opportunities in prison to build skills alongside support for IPP prisoners to access employment and accommodation on release. It is right that IPP sentences were abolished, and we are committed to making further progress towards a safe and sustainable release for those serving the IPP sentence, but not in a way that impacts public protection. The Government will continue to consult with organisations and campaign groups to ensure it takes the appropriate course of action to support those still serving IPP sentences.

How many (a) women and (b) men have been released from prisons in Reigate constituency under the early release scheme in September 2024.

Data on SDS40 releases in specific areas such as Reigate forms a subset of data intended for future publication.  The number of prison places projected to be saved nationally is in the Impact Assessment published on 17 July 2024.