To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of prison inspections in providing an accurate reflection of the work of prison service staff.

The Ministry of Justice welcomes the external scrutiny of the treatment of those in custody by Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons. Annually, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons agrees with the Ministry of Justice the approach they intend for their inspection programmes. For each inspection completed, a report is published which includes recommendations for improvement. These reports are all in the public domain and available from the Inspectorate’s website. While the factual accuracy of information in inspection reports will be checked before publication, it is an important principle that the judgements expressed in reports are the Chief Inspector’s own, based on evidence collected by independent inspectors. After each inspection, recommendations made will inform an action plan adopted by those responsible for the management of the inspected establishment.