Prisons: Access
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will require the mapping platform what3words to limit access to the prison estate.
Answered by Jake Richards
To protect the public, prisons must hold prisoners securely to prevent further crime, maintain order and provide an environment conducive to reform.
The Department is committed to taking every possible measure to strengthen prison security.
Whilst we cannot share our full range of countermeasures, our approach is continually evolving, and includes working closely across Government, with law enforcement, and also the private sector to identify and mitigate emerging threats. This includes mitigating any threats from geocoding services.
For example, in this 2025-26 financial year we are investing over £40 million in physical security across 34 prisons. This includes circa £10 million on anti-drone measures such as secure windows and robust netting at 15 prisons.
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