Minister of State for Prisons, Parole and Probation (): Safety in prisons continues
to be of paramount importance and we remain committed to tackling
violence against both staff and prisoners. When the Government
launched the Prisons Strategy White Paper in 2021, we pledged to
look at alternatives to the use of wet-shave razors in prisons,
which can be used to self-harm and to carry out assaults. Recent
serious assaults on prison staff illustrate the potential danger
posed by wet-shave razors in prisons.
With this in mind, over the past six-month period we have
undertaken pilots of electric shavers as an alternative to
wet-shave razors at HMP Leicester and HMP Swansea, with a view to
eliminating razor attacks on staff and prisoners.
Following these pilots, I am pleased to announce that my
Department has decided to implement a phased removal of wet-shave
razors from the adult male closed estate. This phased removal
will start with 30 prisons in the adult male closed estate with
the highest levels of violence, with the intention of a
subsequent roll-out across the whole adult male estate, subject
to available funding.
We will initially invest over £1.5 million this year for the
first tranche of 30 prisons to provide prisoners with alternative
electric shavers, which have been developed specifically for the
Prison Service. We will work closely with key stakeholders,
including Trade Unions, on the planning and implementation of
this work.
My Department is committed to delivering on the promises we made
in the Prisons Strategy White Paper and to tackling violence and
self-harm in our prisons.
