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The Ministry of Justice said the prisons competition process had produced a "compelling package of reforms" which it hoped would save £450m over the next six years.
Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said: "The cost of running our prisons is too high and must be reduced. We can do this by being more innovative and efficient, and without compromising public safety."
You won't like this, see if you don't, but I will say it regardless.
British prisons should not be in the business of saving money. They should be fully funded to do the job that they are put there for in the first place. And that is to provide a suitable punishment for breaking the law, and a deterrent to not re-offend again. It is precisely because they have been forced to make cuts, and been forced to accept inadequate private company management, that these cushy conditions have resulted in the re-offending rates we have.
Prison sentences are not succeeding in turning the majority of offenders away from crime. Of those prisoners released in 1997, 58 per cent were convicted of another crime within two years. 36 per cent were back inside on another prison sentence. The system struggles particularly to reform younger offenders. 18–20-year-old male prisoners were reconvicted at a rate of 72 per cent over the
same period; 47 per cent received another prison sentence.
In fact, the headline reconviction figure masks a far greater problem for public safety. We know, for instance, that of those reconvicted in the two years following release, each will actually have received three further convictions on average. For each reconviction, it is estimated that five recorded offences are committed. At a conservative estimate, released prisoners are responsible for at least 1 million crimes per year – 18 per cent of recorded, notifiable crimes. And this takes no account of the amount of unrecorded crime that ex-prisoners, reconvicted or otherwise, will have committed.
These soft options of "Community Service" for wrongdoing just makes things worse, and most yobs see an ASBO as a badge of honour to get street cred. If prisons won't behave like prisons, and Judges won't behave like Judges, what do you expect?
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The Kite Fliers
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Kite fliers: An imaginary club of solo members, those who don't yet
belong to a formal team so "fly their own kites" - as the saying goes. |
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And just why won't we like it?
In fact, it gets......
.... a very big one of these......
followed by a few of these.......
...to recover from the shock!
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A genuine thank you Gentlemen, your response is very welcome to hear.
I will always give credit where it is genuinely due, but will continue to withhold it when it isn't. You'll always get a fair deal from me.
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I think that is one issue where every decent resident of this country will agree with.
It really is time that they return to what they are - A prison, not a B****y 5 star hotel!
Edit: I've got to admit though, that the prison service as well as the rehabilitation services really do a good job.
Unfortunately, it's not all down to them.
Case in point: - Recently, I received a call from a regular customer, which to be honest, I thought that I'd never see again - hadn't been in touch for over 3 years.
In fact, he had just been released after serving 3 years. While inside, he completed numerous education courses, with one on them being the ECDL, which to his amazement, he enjoyed.
Has he put all that to good use?
NO, he hasn't & I'll expect to see him again in another 3 years, as he's back to his old tricks.
What is the answer? I don't really know!
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The Ministry of Justice said the prisons competition process had produced a "compelling package of reforms" which it hoped would save £450m over the next six years.
Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said: "The cost of running our prisons is too high and must be reduced. We can do this by being more innovative and efficient, and without compromising public safety."
You won't like this, see if you don't, but I will say it regardless.
British prisons should not be in the business of saving money. They should be fully funded to do the job that they are put there for in the first place. And that is to provide a suitable punishment for breaking the law, and a deterrent to not re-offend again. It is precisely because they have been forced to make cuts, and been forced to accept inadequate private company management, that these cushy conditions have resulted in the re-offending rates we have.
Prison sentences are not succeeding in turning the majority of offenders away from crime. Of those prisoners released in 1997, 58 per cent were convicted of another crime within two years. 36 per cent were back inside on another prison sentence. The system struggles particularly to reform younger offenders. 18–20-year-old male prisoners were reconvicted at a rate of 72 per cent over the
same period; 47 per cent received another prison sentence.
In fact, the headline reconviction figure masks a far greater problem for public safety. We know, for instance, that of those reconvicted in the two years following release, each will actually have received three further convictions on average. For each reconviction, it is estimated that five recorded offences are committed. At a conservative estimate, released prisoners are responsible for at least 1 million crimes per year – 18 per cent of recorded, notifiable crimes. And this takes no account of the amount of unrecorded crime that ex-prisoners, reconvicted or otherwise, will have committed.
These soft options of "Community Service" for wrongdoing just makes things worse, and most yobs see an ASBO as a badge of honour to get street cred. If prisons won't behave like prisons, and Judges won't behave like Judges, what do you expect?
Perhaps the 18th century brits had it right after all. Either hang every criminal for any offense above pickpocket or deport them to an isolated land
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End terrorism by building a school
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 uli Volunteer tester
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Move to Stockton and sort it out. Please
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Pluto will always be a planet to me.
Cash Donation Specialist
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Deportation or hanging is not the answer and never was. Deportation just shifts the problem somewhere else, and hanging doesn't allow for miscarriages of justice, which do happen.
The situation in Stockton is not good Uli, that is for sure. Stockton
In the past three years, officials in the city have dealt with $90m in deficits through a series of drastic cuts. They eliminated a quarter of the city's police officers, one-third of the fire staff, and 40% of all other employees. They also cut wages and medical benefits.
Stockton's unemployment and violent crime rates now rank among the top in the nation. One in every 195 Stockton homes filed for foreclosure in May, according to RealtyTrac. More than 15% of the population of Stockton is unemployed - nearly double the national average.
From what I can see, they made good money from the housing boom a few years ago, and then spent too much of it on development and employee welfare. Having no reserves, it then of course suffered exceptionally badly from the US housing market crash, from which it appears not to have recovered. Cutting police numbers may have saved money, but the results of that strategy ought to have been obvious. And yet, at one time it was clearly a lovely place to live in, it seems to be to be a real shame.
What is needed is a charismatic Mayor with the guts to say right, the rot stops here, we will all pull together to get ourselves out of this mess. Set up neighborhood crime panels to tackle lawlessness, start up a volunteer scheme like the PCSO's in the UK to support the police. Obama is on cloud 9 with his election win, the City should approach him for cash and aid to bail them out and get back on their feet.
Ann Johnston has made a good start setting up the city-wide volunteer corps VISTAS (Volunteers in Service to Aid Stockton) who volunteer to keep parks clean, assist city staff with record-keeping and document filming, and setting aside whole days to do community service projects. But more needs to be done.
If I lived there Uli I'd fight for the place, I think it is worth it.
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