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Justice Committee: weekly update

7 December 2018

At the end of sitting weeks the Justice Committee publishes a brief summary of its activities in the form of a weekly update.

This week

On Tuesday this week we heard from the new Director of Public Prosecutions, Max Hill QC. 

We also met in private to agree correspondence for publication and discuss future work.

Oral evidence

On Tuesday morning we heard from the new Director of Public Prosecution, Max Hill QC.

The session gave Mr Hill an opportunity to share his priorities for his tenure, and to talk about how the CPS is responding to recent issues (for example, with disclosure).

At 9.48 we heard from:

  • Max Hill QC, Director of Public Prosecutions

You can read the transcript.

Published correspondence

Inquiries with open calls for written evidence

You can still submit evidence to the Committee through its evidence portal for the following inquiry, but please contact the inquiry manager first at bucklandg@parliament.uk, as the deadline for written submissions has passed:

Prison population 2022: planning for the future: Read the terms of reference

Future business 

We are meeting on Tuesday 11th December to take evidence on prisons. 

HMP Birmingham

The Committee will question officials from the Ministry of Justice and HMPPS, the new prison Governor and G4S on problems at HMP Birmingham identified in HMI Prison's Urgent Notification and inspection report. The session will examine:

  • Why HMP Birmingham deteriorated between Inspections to such an extent as to require an Urgent Notification by the Chief Inspector
  • Whether the contract between G4S and the Secretary of State for Justice was sufficient to enable effective management of the prison and intervention when problems arose
  • The role of HMIP in identifying and responding to problems in prisons.

Prison Population 2022: Planning for the Future

The Committee will also take evidence in its final evidence session in the Committee's long-running inquiry into Prison Population 2022: Planning for the Future.

The purpose of this part of the session is to clarify further the Government's strategic approach to managing prisons and those detained in them over the next four years, including:

  • the impact of the strategic and operational approach of the Ministry and HMPPS on the day-to-day running of prisons, including measures to improve safety, decency and rehabilitation
  • the sustainability of the finances
  • the maintenance and modernisation of the prison estate.

Witnesses

10.00am – 11.00am 

  • Michael Spurr, CEO, HMPPS 
  • Neil Richards, Head of Custodial Contracts, HMPPS 
  • Paul Newton, Governor, HMP Birmingham 
  • Jerry Petherick, Managing Director Custodial and Detention Services, G4S 

From 11.00am 

  • Rory Stewart MP, Minister of State for Justice, Ministry of Justice
  • Michael Spurr, CEO, HMPPS (appears in both panels) 

You can watch this session online.

If you wish to watch in person from the public gallery of the Wilson Room, Portcullis House you can. Please read this guidance on visiting Parliament.  
 

Further information

Image: iStockPhoto