Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Recommendation 174
174
Deferred
Mandate universal rollout of take-home naloxone kits and training for all leaving custody.
Conclusion
The MoJ and NHS England, or its successor, must mandate the immediate, universal rollout of take-home naloxone kits for all individuals leaving custody. This must be coupled with comprehensive, compulsory training for all prisoners and staff. This public health measure will help to mitigate the high risk of fatal opioid overdose immediately following release. (Recommendation, Paragraph 61)
Government response summary AI-generated
The government's response does not address the recommendation to mandate universal take-home naloxone kits or provide compulsory training. Instead, it details existing external and internal scrutiny mechanisms for prison security, including HMIP inspections and HMPPS Security Audits.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government · verbatim extract
Deferred
NHS Substance Misuse teams already provide patients with take home naloxone kits and training in the use of them at release for patients who are clinically appropriate, and who consent to take it. However, we do not accept the element of this recommendation to mandate a take-home naloxone kit for every individual leaving custody. NHSE do not consider mandating this on a universal basis to be clinically appropriate, and it would not represent good value for public money to provide medications to patients who do not need it. Legislative changes made last year to the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 have expanded the list of services and professionals who can supply take-home naloxone without a prescription in the community, including drug treatment services, community pharmacies, and outreach providers. These changes have meant naloxone can now be accessed more easily by those at risk of opioid overdose, supporting rapid intervention and saving lives. Nasal naloxone is now available for emergency use in suspected opioid overdoses by prison staff who volunteer to carry it. This initiative is available in over 96% of prisons and we will ensure full coverage across the entire estate. Naloxone training is now embedded into foundation training for all new prison officers and over 9,000 prison staff have been trained. To ensure sustainability, each prison designates five volunteer staff members as trainers, responsible for equipping existing staff with the skills to administer nasal naloxone.
Read the full response on Parliament ↗