Claims have been made that staff are bringing drugs into Bridgend’s HMP Parc, which has seen nine prisoner deaths in the last two months, says Conservative MP Stephen Crabb. Speaking in the House of Commons, Crabb relayed evidence to MPs from a prisoner at the privately run prison who alleged drugs were “everywhere” at HMP Parc. Four of the nine deaths have been linked to substance misuse. Ed Argar, Conservative prisons minister, said that 400 prison staff were trained to use an anti-opioid medicine amid concerns over nitazenes, which has been implicated in dozens of deaths in the UK in the last year.
There has been recent speculation on social media that the prison is a catalyst for the transfer of drugs in and out of the area. Labour’s Nick Smith, MP for Blaenau Gwent, described evidence he had received from a prisoner who referred to the prevalence of hand-crafted blades. His party colleague, Jessica Morden, MP for Newport East, had been contacted by a parent concerned that their child may become another, similar victim.
Argar expressed condolences to the families of the deceased, but urged MPs caution over the nature of the claims. Two recent deaths were not connected to substance misuse, Argar said, but the issue should be considered in the wider context of synthetic opioid threats. There have been searches of both staff and prisoners, but Crabb said there were alleged cases of staff employees bringing in illegal substances.
Argar replied that the “vast overwhelming majority of the staff that work in [HM Prisons and Probation Service – HMPPS] do so honestly and with good intent”. He said body scanners were in use for “visitors and others” and handheld detectors had been rolled out. Both G4S and the Ministry of Justice are responsible, while the surrounding community has raised genuine concerns
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