The Government is committed to supporting women's sport at every opportunity - pushing for greater participation, employment, commercial opportunities and visibility in the media. We appreciate the increased focus the Council of Europe has given to all these aspects.

There is no place for discrimination anywhere, it is completely unacceptable. There are some fantastic initiatives that exist to encourage women to take up sport and physical activity, for example Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign, which has already inspired millions of women and girls to get active regardless of shape, size and ability. The Code for Sports Governance also requires national governing bodies to agree a diversity and inclusion action plan (DIAP) with Sport England and UK Sport. It is important that we make progress in the wider culture of sport to ensure women’s sport is treated equally to men’s at all levels.

New prison accommodation being delivered under the Government’s prison expansion programme, including at the recently opened HMP Five Wells, will meet the standard set by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, that all prisoners in multi-occupancy cells are afforded a minimum of four square metres of living space.

Some cells in older prisons - Victorian prisons, for example – may fall short of these recommended minimum standards. In such cases, other alleviating factors are found. These factors include in particular the fact that prisoners are able to spend a considerable amount of time each day outside their cells (in workshops, classes or other activities).

On 22 April 2022, HMPPS published a revised framework for the certification of prisoner accommodation. Cells are only shared where a Prison Group Director has assessed them to be decent and of an adequate size and condition. In addition, they must have adequate lighting, heating, ventilation and fittings, have 24-hour access to water and sanitation, and allow prisoners to communicate at any time with a prison officer. These standards ensure that prisoners are accommodated safely even when two prisoners are held in a cell (originally designed for one).

HMPPS recognises the importance to prisoners of outdoor exercise and spending time in the open air. Subject to weather conditions and the need to maintain good order and discipline, current policy provides for all prisoners to be afforded a minimum of 30 minutes in the open air daily. Governors strive to deliver above the minimum 30 minutes requirement where operationally possible, which means that many prisoners may regularly benefit from a greater amount of time in the open air, including through participation in activities/physical education and exercise. There are no immediate plans to review the policy.

The Government is committed to a sentencing framework that takes account of the true nature of crimes and targets specific groups of offenders accordingly. This means that serious criminals must spend time in prison that reflects the gravity of their crimes, whilst we also look to divert offenders away from a life of crime and support them to rehabilitate.

The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act introduced targeted interventions for the most serious and most dangerous offenders, and those of most public concern. This includes those who commit the premeditated murder of a child, for example. These are serious crimes, and we must ensure that offenders are receiving appropriate punishments so that victims are protected for longer and the public can have confidence in the system.

This government has made tangible progress in tackling the £18 billion cost of reoffending and protecting the public. Data shows that over the last 10 years, reoffending rates have decreased from 30.9% in 2009/10 to 25.6% in 2019/2020. To continue this progress, we will invest £200m a year by 2024-25 to improve prison leavers’ access to accommodation, employment support and substance misuse treatment. This includes delivering a Prisoner Education Service which raises the level of the numeracy, literacy, skills and qualifications of offenders and delivering a presumption in favour of offering offenders the chance to work in prisons and on release.

Alongside delivering 20,000 additional prison places by the middle of this decade, we are also continuing to invest in critical maintenance projects to ensure as much capacity as possible is kept online. This will have a positive impact on lowering the proportion of crowding within the prison estate.

The Ministry of Justice is committed to working with health partners to improve the timeliness of transfers from prison to hospital under the Mental Health Act.  As stated in the Government’s response to the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment’s report, we recognise that in some cases this currently takes far too long.

That is why last month the Government published a draft Mental Health Bill which introduces a new statutory time limit of 28-days for transfers from prisons to hospital. This time limit, together with operational improvements, will help reduce unnecessary delays and ensure people in the criminal justice system receive swift access to treatment.

The draft Bill will also end the use of prison as a ‘place of safety’. This will end the practice of courts diverting offenders or defendants requiring assessment and treatment in an inpatient setting to prison when there are no hospital beds available, ensuring vulnerable offenders are able to access the right support in the right environment.

The draft Bill will now be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny.

The capacity of each prison and the overall capacity of the prison estate is reviewed on a weekly basis to ensure there are sufficient places for all offenders. Prison numbers can fluctuate, which is why we have a robust set of plans in place to ensure we will always have enough places for offenders sent to custody by the courts.

We are committed to building as many prison places as we need. Over the next ten years, additional capacity will come in to use through new build prison accommodation, existing accommodation returning to use following the completion of essential maintenance or places coming into use following a change in function.

We are investing £3.8 billion to deliver 20,000 additional, modern prison places including 2,000 temporary prison places across England and Wales. This includes refurbishing and building additional houseblocks across existing prison sites and creating four new prisons over the next six years and expanding another four prisons over the next three years. The first of these, HMP Five Wells in Northamptonshire, opened in February and work is also well underway at HMP Fosse Way, Leicestershire (on the former HMP Glen Parva site).

HMPPS is committed to promoting prisoner welfare and wellbeing. This is ensured through a number of procedures and mandatory policies.

In relation to Time in the Open Air, subject to weather conditions and the need to maintain good order and discipline, all prisoners are afforded a minimum of 30 minutes in the open air daily. However, many prisoners may regularly benefit from more, including through participation in activities.

Prison cell occupancy in prisons in England and Wales is certified by the Prison Group Director (PGD) in accordance with the Certified Prisoner Accommodation Framework, which provides guidelines for determining cell capacities. Cells are only shared where a PGD has assessed them to be of an adequate size and condition.

The industrial strategy is a strategy for the whole UK and will bring significant opportunities for Scotland. We are working with businesses, universities and business groups across Scotland to seize those opportunities. In line with devolution, the Scottish Government, of course, hold many of the levers to boost and support the growth that we hope the strategy will bring.

The UK Government has been working collaboratively with the Scottish Government to implement the Industrial Strategy.

We have announced sector deals in Life Sciences, Creative Industries, Artificial Intelligence, Automotive and Construction. I am also aware of further proposals for sector deals from the oil and gas, and food and drink sectors which have the potential to make a significant contribution in Scotland.