David Lammy responds to record high for self-harm incidents in custody

David Lammy MP, Labour’s Shadow Justice Secretary, responding to the news that self-harm incidents in custody reached a record high in the 12 months to March 2020, up 11% on the previous year, said:

“The fact that we are witnessing record levels of self-harm in our prisons is deeply alarming. It comes following 10 years of cuts that have left prisons overcrowded and understaffed.

“These statistics show the massive scale of this problem even before emergency lockdown measures were introduced to the prison estate. With prisoners isolated in their cells for 23 hours per day during the pandemic, the number that are self-harming may have further increased.

“It is vital that prisoners get access to the mental health support they need, which will also help them rehabilitate.”

Ends

Note to editors

· The figures also show there were 89 assaults on other prisoners per day and 27 assaults on staff per day in the 12 months to March 2020. While this is down on the previous 12 months, it is significantly higher than in 2010. The statistics are published in full here:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/905064/safety-in-custody-q1-2020.pdf