MPs are to reopen an inquiry into Welsh prisons following the “very concerning” deaths of 13 inmates at HMP Parc Bridgend this year and arrests of four staff members on suspicion of assault and misconduct last month.

New chairwoman of the reformed Welsh Affairs Commitee, Ruth Jones MP, said it vowed to prioritise the investigation.

The committee has been told that staff had been taking illegal substances into the prison, with one prisoner claiming that “drugs are everywhere, from cannabis to heroin.”