Shaughna Phillips has slammed the UK prison system after visiting her baby’s dad, Billy Webb who is currently serving a nine-year sentence.
The former Love Island star branded the system “f***ed” following months of reports that prisons are becoming overcrowded. According to official government documents, it’s claimed that an eye-watering 88,225 people are currently serving time at His Majesty’s Pleasure. Shaughna’s former partner, Billy Webb, was sentenced to nine years after admitting conspiracy to supply 4.5kg of cocaine and was sentenced to nine years in jail back in November 2023.
During a discussion with a TikTok creator on her political podcast, The Turnout by Love Islander Shaughna Phillips, the reality star shared her honest views about the system.
She said: “It’s a little bit like when you have to use the NHS – you absolutely, truly don’t know how f***ed it is until you’re in a position when you have to use it. And obviously Lucia’s Dad is in prison, and I take her to go and see him and I know the rigamarole we have to go through, and it just terrifies me.”
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shaughnaphillips/Instagram)
Shaughna went on to state that while Billy is from a “good family” and has a “good support system”, there are around 20% of prisoners from the care system, making her question how the government and authorities appeared to have failed the individuals.
She added: “There are people that become institutionalised, that want to get rearrested because it’s the only structure they’ve ever known. So we’re putting people in prison and when they come out they’re in no better shape.”
Over the years, spending and funding for the prison system has decreased. But in 2021/2022, spending increased to £4.06 billion, which is expected to go up to £4.34 billion in 2024/2025.
Reflecting on her views of prisons, Shaughna commented: “There’s absolutely no funding in the prison system and when you’re in there you’re locked up, sometimes for 23 hours a day, that’s not great for your mental health.
“And I know some of these people are the worst of the worst, but the reality is they’re going to be back on the streets at some point, so we need to put money back into them in the hopes that it does curb crime, something needs to change.”
Currently, the Ministry of Justice has predicted that the number of people locked in prison cells will rise to between 93,100 to 106,300 by March 2027 due to various factors including changes to sentencing legislation.
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