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Written question asked by Afzal Khan (Labour) on Tuesday, 4 February 2020, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 10 February 2020 (named day). It was answered by Brandon Lewis (Conservative) on Tuesday, 11 February 2020 on behalf of the Home Office.

Offenders: Radicalism

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s news story entitled Tougher sentencing and monitoring in government overhaul of terrorism response, published on 21 January 20202, what steps she is taking to help ensure that Imams tasked with challenging the beliefs of radicalised offenders are sufficiently independent from government.

Answer

The Government has formulated a combined response to the Member’s questions given the connected nature of the questions.

23 Chaplaincy Intervention Providers (IPs) were selected to deliver the Theological and Ideological Interventions (TII) Programme in prisons which launched in January 2019.

All were existing HMPPS Chaplaincy employees – recommended by HMPPS Counter-Terrorism specialist staff, and subject to Government vetting and due diligence checks. They are therefore not independent of government, but selected based on experience, knowledge and skills in challenging extremism.

Existing skills are supplemented with a diverse set of training; for example, in one-to-one interventions, theology, counter-narratives, and psychology. Training is delivered and reviewed in partnership with local Counter-Terrorism teams, and other practitioners working in complementary fields.

The recruitment of additional chaplains is kept under review to ensure needs are being met. We take continuous improvement seriously and consult community and academic partners wherever possible.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
12378
Session
2019-21
Grouped for answer
Yes
Subjects
Offenders Radicalism Imams
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk