Today the Justice Committee has published the final report of its Tackling drugs in prisons inquiry. The report paints a concerning picture, citing authorities including the Chief Inspector of Prisons and the Government’s own independent advisor on drugs to state that there is a ‘drugs crisis’ in prisons, and the approach needs ‘urgent reform and investment’.
Collective Voice gave both oral and written evidence to the inquiry, and welcomes the recommendations and the urgency and weight with which they are delivered.
Executive Director of Collective Voice, Dr Will Haydock, released the following statement in response. There are other issues that aren’t covered directly in this statement that will be important in delivering the change that needs to happen – for example the role of long-acting depot buprenorphine. So we’d encourage to read the report itself if you can. But these are the points that we think the Government needs to accept and focus on urgently.
Treatment transforms lives and reduces crime
Many crimes are linked to use of alcohol or other drugs. It has previously been estimated that 66% of theft from shops is drug-related[i], 52% of homicides are drug-related[ii], and pilot testing found that 59% of those tested under suspicion of domestic abuse were positive for cocaine and/or opiates.[iii]
Fortunately, we have evidence-based solutions available to reduce harm and costs related to use of alcohol and other drugs. Being in treatment for use of alcohol or other drugs reduces offences by 33%.[iv]
We must change the way treatment in prison is funded and commissioned
Unfortunately, as the report explains, the current approach to funding and commissioning treatment services in prison is complex and fragmented, which limits its effectiveness.
We welcome the committee’s recommendation [paragraph 127] for an overhaul of the commissioning structure, following our advice that substance use treatment should be commissioned directly and separately from general healthcare services, and include greater involvement of prison governors and local authorities.
Addressing substance use issues should entail addressing the personal, social and economic factors that can shape these issues, and so we need to take a wide view of people’s lives and environment, and ensure prison staff and governors prioritise space and resources for meaningful activity. A specialist approach that involves governors more directly will enable our services to deliver more effective and efficient support. This must also ensure that sufficient resources are allocated to these invaluable services.
Drug testing and supply restrictions should be implemented with caution
As the committee notes, drug testing can be a useful tool to identify if someone is facing issues with using substances, and then help them to access support.
Given the continual emergence of new psychoactive substances, the committee therefore recommends that testing and detection mechanisms are regularly updated to keep pace with the development of new substances.
However, this approach may lead to unintended consequences. Synthetic cannabinoids – or ‘Spice’ – were created and took hold in prisons largely because they could not be picked up by drug tests, and the prevalence of new psychoactive substances in prison, as the report notes, is driven by their ability to evade detection.
This approach of chasing after new substances risks replicating the problems around Spice: pushing people who use drugs to ever newer – and therefore riskier – substances. The technology is available such that new chemicals can be continually developed that may have a psychoactive effect, but these substances are almost by definition more risky than what went before, simply because both the people using these and the healthcare staff responding to issues will know less about them. This makes it more likely that people using the substances will have an adverse reaction or overdose, and less likely that those around them will know how best to respond.
Therefore while drug testing and detection are an important part of the toolkit available to prisons to reduce disorder and harm related to drugs, they must be used carefully, as part of a plan to support people and make prisons safer, with an eye to unintended consequences.
We must look beyond prison to resolve the crisis in our criminal justice system
This inquiry focused on substance use in prison, but the criminal justice crisis isn’t just about prisons – and we can’t solve the prisons crisis without looking outside the walls.
If the recommendations of the Sentencing Review[v] are to be taken forward – as they must be if we are to resolve the prisons capacity crisis – then more offenders will need to be supported outside of prison, which means expanding access to effective and intensive substance use treatment in the community. This requires investment.
This is why we are calling on the government to reallocate even just a fraction of prison capital funding to substance use treatment to deliver a more effective, efficient response in the community. Substance use treatment is not only effective in reducing crime; it is more a more efficient intervention than imprisonment.[vi]
Even within current budget plans, there must be a place for specialist substance use support in community supervision of offenders.
The Government has announced plans for HM Probation Service to receive up to £700m in additional funding per year by 2028‑29 to support more people the community rather than prison.[vii] Probation cannot do this work alone. The evidence – and Government guidance – is clear that there should be specialist staff in place, with strong clinical supervision to ensure a trusted, therapeutic alliance with a clear treatment approach.[viii]
Funding must therefore be allocated to specialist substance use treatment services as part of Ministry of Justice plans to implement the recommendations of the Independent Sentencing Review.
The Government must work with treatment charities to take action urgently
As the report describes, this issue ‘endangers lives’ and means prisons are unable to properly ‘maintain control and safety and to rehabilitate effectively’. But if we get our approach to treatment right, this makes individuals, prisons and the whole of society safer – and all at a lower cost to the public purse.
We call on the Government to accept the key recommendations of the inquiry and work with stakeholders – including our members – to implement them effectively. We are ready and waiting to provide our support – and there should be no delay in taking action. As the committee notes, ‘Without urgent reform … the prison estate will remain unstable, unsafe and incapable of delivering its rehabilitative purpose.’
If you’re interested in Collective Voice’s wider positions on policy and practice, we recommend reading our recent responses to the consultations on the 2025 Autumn Budget, the 2025 Spending Review and The 10-year health plan.
Notes:
[i] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/246390/horr73.pdf
[ii] https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/methodologies/measuringdrugrelatedhomicidemethodologyfebruary2024
[iii] https://news.npcc.police.uk/releases/police-pilots-find-high-levels-of-drug-use-in-domestic-abuse-offenders
[iv] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-effect-of-drug-and-alcohol-treatment-on-re-offending
[v] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-sentencing-review-final-report
[vi] As noted in the Independent Sentencing Review, the average cost of holding a prisoner for the year was estimated to be £53,801 per prisoner in 2023-24. Community substance use treatment, even alongside probation supervision, can be provided at a fraction of this cost, including detoxification and residential placements. See https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/682d8d995ba51be7c0f45371/independent-sentencing-review-report-part_2.pdf
[vii] https://www.civilserviceworld.com/professions/article/spending-review-moj-prison-new-places-probation-funding
[viii] See https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/PRN00937-10-year-strategic-plan-for-the-drug-and-alcohol-treatment-and-recovery-workforce-2024-to-2034.pdf
Collective Voice calls on Government to accept and implement the recommendations of the Justice Committee inquiry on drugs in prisons
Today the Justice Committee has published the final report of its Tackling drugs in prisons inquiry. The report paints a concerning picture, citing authorities including the Chief Inspector of Prisons and the Government’s own independent advisor on drugs to state that there is a ‘drugs crisis’ in prisons, and the approach needs ‘urgent reform and investment’.
Collective Voice gave both oral and written evidence to the inquiry, and welcomes the recommendations and the urgency and weight with which they are delivered.
Executive Director of Collective Voice, Dr Will Haydock, released the following statement in response. There are other issues that aren’t covered directly in this statement that will be important in delivering the change that needs to happen – for example the role of long-acting depot buprenorphine. So we’d encourage to read the report itself if you can. But these are the points that we think the Government needs to accept and focus on urgently.
Treatment transforms lives and reduces crime
Many crimes are linked to use of alcohol or other drugs. It has previously been estimated that 66% of theft from shops is drug-related[i], 52% of homicides are drug-related[ii], and pilot testing found that 59% of those tested under suspicion of domestic abuse were positive for cocaine and/or opiates.[iii]
Fortunately, we have evidence-based solutions available to reduce harm and costs related to use of alcohol and other drugs. Being in treatment for use of alcohol or other drugs reduces offences by 33%.[iv]
We must change the way treatment in prison is funded and commissioned
Unfortunately, as the report explains, the current approach to funding and commissioning treatment services in prison is complex and fragmented, which limits its effectiveness.
We welcome the committee’s recommendation [paragraph 127] for an overhaul of the commissioning structure, following our advice that substance use treatment should be commissioned directly and separately from general healthcare services, and include greater involvement of prison governors and local authorities.
Addressing substance use issues should entail addressing the personal, social and economic factors that can shape these issues, and so we need to take a wide view of people’s lives and environment, and ensure prison staff and governors prioritise space and resources for meaningful activity. A specialist approach that involves governors more directly will enable our services to deliver more effective and efficient support. This must also ensure that sufficient resources are allocated to these invaluable services.
Drug testing and supply restrictions should be implemented with caution
As the committee notes, drug testing can be a useful tool to identify if someone is facing issues with using substances, and then help them to access support.
Given the continual emergence of new psychoactive substances, the committee therefore recommends that testing and detection mechanisms are regularly updated to keep pace with the development of new substances.
However, this approach may lead to unintended consequences. Synthetic cannabinoids – or ‘Spice’ – were created and took hold in prisons largely because they could not be picked up by drug tests, and the prevalence of new psychoactive substances in prison, as the report notes, is driven by their ability to evade detection.
This approach of chasing after new substances risks replicating the problems around Spice: pushing people who use drugs to ever newer – and therefore riskier – substances. The technology is available such that new chemicals can be continually developed that may have a psychoactive effect, but these substances are almost by definition more risky than what went before, simply because both the people using these and the healthcare staff responding to issues will know less about them. This makes it more likely that people using the substances will have an adverse reaction or overdose, and less likely that those around them will know how best to respond.
Therefore while drug testing and detection are an important part of the toolkit available to prisons to reduce disorder and harm related to drugs, they must be used carefully, as part of a plan to support people and make prisons safer, with an eye to unintended consequences.
We must look beyond prison to resolve the crisis in our criminal justice system
This inquiry focused on substance use in prison, but the criminal justice crisis isn’t just about prisons – and we can’t solve the prisons crisis without looking outside the walls.
If the recommendations of the Sentencing Review[v] are to be taken forward – as they must be if we are to resolve the prisons capacity crisis – then more offenders will need to be supported outside of prison, which means expanding access to effective and intensive substance use treatment in the community. This requires investment.
This is why we are calling on the government to reallocate even just a fraction of prison capital funding to substance use treatment to deliver a more effective, efficient response in the community. Substance use treatment is not only effective in reducing crime; it is more a more efficient intervention than imprisonment.[vi]
Even within current budget plans, there must be a place for specialist substance use support in community supervision of offenders.
The Government has announced plans for HM Probation Service to receive up to £700m in additional funding per year by 2028‑29 to support more people the community rather than prison.[vii] Probation cannot do this work alone. The evidence – and Government guidance – is clear that there should be specialist staff in place, with strong clinical supervision to ensure a trusted, therapeutic alliance with a clear treatment approach.[viii]
Funding must therefore be allocated to specialist substance use treatment services as part of Ministry of Justice plans to implement the recommendations of the Independent Sentencing Review.
The Government must work with treatment charities to take action urgently
As the report describes, this issue ‘endangers lives’ and means prisons are unable to properly ‘maintain control and safety and to rehabilitate effectively’. But if we get our approach to treatment right, this makes individuals, prisons and the whole of society safer – and all at a lower cost to the public purse.
We call on the Government to accept the key recommendations of the inquiry and work with stakeholders – including our members – to implement them effectively. We are ready and waiting to provide our support – and there should be no delay in taking action. As the committee notes, ‘Without urgent reform … the prison estate will remain unstable, unsafe and incapable of delivering its rehabilitative purpose.’
If you’re interested in Collective Voice’s wider positions on policy and practice, we recommend reading our recent responses to the consultations on the 2025 Autumn Budget, the 2025 Spending Review and The 10-year health plan.
Notes:
[i] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/246390/horr73.pdf
[ii] https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/methodologies/measuringdrugrelatedhomicidemethodologyfebruary2024
[iii] https://news.npcc.police.uk/releases/police-pilots-find-high-levels-of-drug-use-in-domestic-abuse-offenders
[iv] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-effect-of-drug-and-alcohol-treatment-on-re-offending
[v] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-sentencing-review-final-report
[vi] As noted in the Independent Sentencing Review, the average cost of holding a prisoner for the year was estimated to be £53,801 per prisoner in 2023-24. Community substance use treatment, even alongside probation supervision, can be provided at a fraction of this cost, including detoxification and residential placements. See https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/682d8d995ba51be7c0f45371/independent-sentencing-review-report-part_2.pdf
[vii] https://www.civilserviceworld.com/professions/article/spending-review-moj-prison-new-places-probation-funding
[viii] See https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/PRN00937-10-year-strategic-plan-for-the-drug-and-alcohol-treatment-and-recovery-workforce-2024-to-2034.pdf
Related Content
Collective Voice responds to the Government’s Men’s Health Strategy
If the Government is serious about improving men’s health it must provide the leadership and investment required to reduce deaths and health harm related to
Collective Voice calls on Government to prioritise reducing harm from drugs
Every one of these deaths is a tragedy – and we should be doing more as a society to prevent them. ONS 2024 data on
Collective Voice responds to the Government’s consultation on the Autumn Budget
The Government has set out admirable ideas and principles in the 10-year health plan and the response to the Independent Sentencing Review, as well as