Nothing will better test the honesty and mettle of this government than the prisons crisis (Editorial, 12 December). Administrations of left and right have engaged in penal populism to capture the high “law and order” electoral ground since the 1990s. The result has been the steady lengthening of prison sentences such that we now have the longest in western Europe and the greatest reliance on indeterminate sentences.
Punitiveness characterises every aspect of the system. More offenders are sent to prison and for longer, and more less-serious offenders enter prison by the back door for breaching the restrictive requirements of community penalties. The government has taken a few positive steps. The appointment of James Timpson as prisons minister seemed encouraging, though he has already resiled from the view that one-third of our prison population doesn’t need to be there. And the sentencing review panel under David Gauke is tentatively suggesting that we might do one or two things differently. But the risk that lessons are not going to be learned finds expression in the call for longer sentences for murderers who strangle their partners.
Even more damaging is the announcement that more prisons are to be built, no matter what Gauke comes up with. The last thing we should be doing is expanding the system. Sentencing tariffs need to be systematically shortened to where they were as recently as 20-30 years ago. A prisons closure programme needs to be announced. The probation service needs rebuilding, separate from the Prison Service, and resources put into crime-reducing community programmes.
Finally, the Gauke panel, whose remit excludes youth justice, should take a look at the fact that when I chaired the Youth Justice Board in 2004-07, the number of juveniles in custody was more than 3,000. Today the figure is 400-500. There are lessons to be learned there.
Prof Rod Morgan
Professor emeritus of criminal justice, University of Bristol
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
