Written question asked by Philip Davies (Conservative) on Wednesday, 8 September 2010, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 13 September 2010. It was answered by Crispin Blunt (Conservative) on Thursday, 16 September 2010 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Prisons: Dogs

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on the use of dogs by the Prison Service in prisons.

Answer: The National Offender Management Service have dog teams trained and accredited in six different areas of detection including drugs and arms and explosives searching, in addition to patrol and specialist incident support dog teams. The protocols and procedures for the use of prison dogs are based on need and will differ between specialities. The use of all prison dogs is set out in restricted Prison Service Orders, 1050 Prison Service Dogs Chapters 1 (Standards) and 2 (Training Aids); and 1053 External Patrols which are supported by local security protocols. All prison dogs deployed in the prison estate are fully accredited.

Secondary information