Tackling drugs in prisons

Justice Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 17 Dec 2024 Closed: 22 Apr 2026 Parliament page
The Justice Committee has launched an inquiry that will examine the scale and impact of drugs in prisons in England and Wales, including the primary factors driving demand. The inquiry will consider the implications of drug misuse in prisons including safety, security, staffing and prisoner well-being. The inquiry will look … Read more
11 Recommendations
30 Conclusions
1 Report
2 Oral sessions
1 Letter
3 Events
Activity timeline 8 events
9 Jan
2026
Report published
31 Oct
2025
Report published
22 Jul
2025
Correspondence
8 Jul
2025
Oral evidence
8 Jul
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Thatcher Room, Portcullis House
25 Mar
2025
Formal meeting (private meeting) · Room 13, Palace of Westminster
25 Feb
2025
Oral evidence
25 Feb
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 6, Palace of Westminster
Oral evidence sessions 2 sessions
8 Jul 2025
View on parliament.uk
Matt Grey · HM Prison and Probation Service Richard Vince CBE · HM Prison and Probation Service The Lord Timpson OBE DL · Ministry of Justice
25 Feb 2025
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Babafemi Dada · HMP Long Lartin Charlie Taylor · HM Inspectorate of Prisons Dame Carol Black Elisabeth Davies · Independent Monitoring Boards (IMB) Natalie McKee · HMP Hindley Rob Luxford · HMP Liverpool
Title HC No. Published Items Response
6th Report - Tackling the drugs crisis in our prisons HC 557 31 Oct 2025 41 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
1 result
Clear
195 Recommendation Rejected
6th Report - Tackling the drugs cr…
Manage key OCG operators under enhanced security, segregating them from general prison population
Individuals identified as key OCG operators must be managed under enhanced security protocols and, where possible, segregated from the general prison population to prevent them from exploiting vulnerable prisoners and staff to maintain their “clean profile”. The practice of merely … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation to segregate individuals solely based on OCG involvement, citing current legislation. However, they are commissioning work to consider how to manage regimes for SOC-linked prisoners and are undertaking a research study on debt within prisons, with findings due in 2026 to inform future policy.
Ministry of Justice
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Government Response AI assessment · 41 of 11 classified
Accepted 6
Accepted in Part 8
Acknowledged 2
Deferred 24
Rejected 1
Total 11 recs + 30 conclusions
Correspondence 1 letter
22 Jul 2025 Correspondence from Lord Timpson, Minister for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, dated 22 July 2025 relating to the oral evidence session held on 8 July 2025
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