MPs on the cross-party justice committee have launched an inquiry into tackling drug use in prisons in England and Wales.

The probe will assess the scale, impact and drivers of drug demand as well as their effects on safety, staffing, and prisoner wellbeing, the committee said.

It will also examine drug supply, the role of organised crime and the use of technology like drones and mobile phones in trafficking.

Ministry of Justice data shows that drone sightings near prisons rose from 478 in 2022 to 1,063 in 2023.

Committee chairman Andy Slaughter said that the use of drugs “is having a destabilising effect on prison safety, security as well as on overstretched prison staff and inmates in overcrowded jails.”       

“This timely inquiry will examine the scale of the problem and impact drugs are having across the crumbling prison estate which is already grappling with a severe capacity crisis,” he said.

“At a time of acute pressure across the whole of the prison estate, it is vital that effective solutions are found to reduce the many harms caused by drugs.”