The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answer on 12th March 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked His Majesty’s Government, in regard to the women’s local data resources published by the Prison Reform Trust, what steps they are taking to address the regional disparities in the use of imprisonment for women.
Lord Timpson (Lab, MoJ): Sentencing decisions in individual cases are a matter for the courts.
This Government has set a clear goal to reduce the number of women going to prison, with more managed in the community. The Sentencing Act represents a generational shift in reforming sentencing, offender management, and community supervision. The presumption for courts to suspend short custodial sentences, along with the increased use of suspended sentences, and increased flexibility to defer a sentence for longer, is expected to reduce the number of women going to prison.
The Church of England in Parliament 
You must be logged in to post a comment.