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Chakrabarti pledges to end 'authoritarian arms race' over UK prisons Chakrabarti pledges to end 'authoritarian arms race' over UK prisons
(about 1 hour later)
The shadow attorney general, Shami Chakrabarti, has pledged to end the “authoritarian arms race” to lock up more criminals as prison officers deal with the aftermath of the latest in a string of prison riots.The shadow attorney general, Shami Chakrabarti, has pledged to end the “authoritarian arms race” to lock up more criminals as prison officers deal with the aftermath of the latest in a string of prison riots.
In remarks that are being seen as signalling an end to New Labour’s “tough on crime” mantra, Chakrabarti said prison overcrowding had contributed to “a crisis this Christmas in British prisons”.In remarks that are being seen as signalling an end to New Labour’s “tough on crime” mantra, Chakrabarti said prison overcrowding had contributed to “a crisis this Christmas in British prisons”.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme after riot officers ended a disturbance at HMP Swaleside on the Isle of Sheppey, Chakrabarti said: “In my adult lifetime I have seen a doubling of the prison population and I think this was caused by an authoritarian arms race in British politics between the two parties. We are not in the arms race.” Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme after riot officers ended a disturbance at HMP Swaleside on the Isle of Sheppey, Chakrabarti said: “In my adult lifetime I have seen a doubling of the prison population and I think this was caused by an authoritarian arms race in British politics between the two parties. We are not in the arms race.
The former director of the human rights charity Liberty added: “After my background I wouldn’t have joined this shadow cabinet if I didn’t think there was an opportunity to at least reflect on what’s being going on for nearly a quarter of a century. I don’t believe the sum of human wickedness has doubled in my adult lifetime.” “After my background, I wouldn’t have joined this shadow cabinet if I didn’t think there was an opportunity to at least reflect on what’s being going on for nearly a quarter of a century. I don’t believe the sum of human wickedness has doubled in my adult lifetime.”
Her comments follow the intervention by the former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg and former home secretaries Ken Clarke and Jacqui Smith calling for a dramatic reduction in the prison population. Her comments follow the intervention by the former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg and the former home secretaries Ken Clarke and Jacqui Smith demanding a dramatic reduction in the prison population.
Chakrabarti also called for a fundamental rethink of criminal justice policy that would include ending private sector involvement in running jails. Chakrabarti, the former director of human rights organisation Liberty, suggested that Labour was prepared to listen to prisoners who had been rioting in Britain’s jails. “There is a crisis this Christmas in British prisons. We have to call for calm, because I’m sure it is a very miserable time to be inside a prison, whether you are working there or incarcerated there. We know there is a crisis. We have to say to prisoners: ‘We are listening. We want this to be a better, safer environment.’
“We have an opportunity now for a different kind of conversation and to ask some really serious questions about what is prison for, and what do we want to achieve when we send someone to prison,” she said.
The Labour peer added: “I think we need to ask questions about whether it is right that there are companies that are profiting from incarceration. Private prisons are exempt from freedom of information, so we can’t deliver the same scrutiny to the level of G4S as we can in relation to public sector prisons. I question whether there should be commercial incentives to lock up more and more people.”
She suggested Labour was prepared to listen to prisoners who had been rioting in Britain’s jails. “There is a crisis this Christmas in British prisons. We have to call for calm because I’m sure it is a very miserable time to be inside a prison whether you are working there or incarcerated there. We know there is a crisis. We have to say to prisoners: ‘We are listening. We want this to be a better, safer environment.’
“We now have overcrowded, understaffed prisons. They are very unsafe places for prison officers and prisoners alike.”“We now have overcrowded, understaffed prisons. They are very unsafe places for prison officers and prisoners alike.”
She also called for a fundamental rethink of criminal justice policy that would include ending private sector involvement in running jails.
“We have an opportunity now for a different kind of conversation and to ask some really serious questions about what is prison for, and what do we want to achieve when we send someone to prison,” she said.
“I think we need to ask questions about whether it is right that there are companies that are profiting from incarceration. Private prisons are exempt from freedom of information, so we can’t deliver the same scrutiny to the level of G4S that we can in relation to public sector prisons. I question whether there should be commercial incentives to lock up more and more people.”
A G4S spokesman said Chakrabarti was wrong to claim that private companies had a financial incentive to see an increased population behind bars.
“We are paid by the taxpayer per available prison place, not per prisoner, so it’s inaccurate to suggest we have an incentive to see more people locked up,” he said. “In fact we run some of the most progressive programmes in the country aimed at reforming and rehabilitating prisoners in the hope that they turn away from crime on release.
“Nor is it true to say that our prisons business is not subject to freedom of information. We provide government with information all the time to satisfy FoI requests regarding the facilities we manage.”
The Labour MP and former minister John Spellar accused Chakrabarti of unilaterally abandoning Labour’s policy of being “tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime”.The Labour MP and former minister John Spellar accused Chakrabarti of unilaterally abandoning Labour’s policy of being “tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime”.
car crash interview on BBC Today as Shami Chakrabarti unilaterally abandons Labour's Policy of "tough on crime,tough on the causes of crime"car crash interview on BBC Today as Shami Chakrabarti unilaterally abandons Labour's Policy of "tough on crime,tough on the causes of crime"
Her remarks come as the Prison Officers Association (POA) threatens a new wave of industrial action after rejecting a government pay offer. A ballot of members turned down the offer by 65.7% to 33.7%. Her remarks came as the Prison Officers Association threatened a new wave of industrial action after rejecting a government pay offer. A ballot of members turned down the offer by 65.7% to 33.7%.
The POA’s general secretary, Steve Gillan, said he wanted to end the dispute through negotiation but had not ruled out taking further industrial action. Speaking to the Guardian, he said: “We have got a meeting on 10 January with the secretary of state [Liz Truss]. If she indicates to us that there is nothing else on the table, then our executive will determine a way forward and that will rule nothing in and nothing out.” The POA’s general secretary, Steve Gillan, said he wanted to end the dispute through negotiation, but had not ruled out taking further industrial action.
Asked whether the union was considering strike action, Gillan said: “I can’t spell out what that could mean because we keep everything under wraps. I would rather a negotiated settlement than confrontation with the government.” “We have got a meeting on 10 January with the secretary of state [Liz Truss]. If she indicates to us that there is nothing else on the table, then our executive will determine a way forward and that will rule nothing in and nothing out,” he told the Guardian.
Gillan said the latest riot at Swaleside prison showed the kind of pressure that prison officers were under. He said: “Our members at Swaleside and all over the country are picking up the pieces of failed government policy. Our members are brave and resilient and it is about time they were rewarded by government for their failed policies to ensure that prisons are safe and our members are safe.” Asked whether the union was considering strike action, Gillan said: “I can’t spell out what that could mean, because we keep everything under wraps. I would rather a negotiated settlement than confrontation with the government.”
Mike Rolfe, the chair of the POA, said: “Prisons can work. What you have got to do is make sure you have got the staffing in place and you resource it properly. They need to be resourced properly. Unfortunately because it is a service that is behind walls and hidden, it is just somewhere they think they can cut quite easily and the general public aren’t going to notice.” Gillan said the latest riot at Swaleside prison showed the kind of pressure that prison officers were under. “Our members at Swaleside and all over the country are picking up the pieces of failed government policy. Our members are brave and resilient, and it is about time they were rewarded by government for their failed policies to ensure that prisons are safe and our members are safe,” he said.
Mike Rolfe, the national chair of the POA, said: “Prisons can work. What you have got to do is make sure you have got the staffing in place and you resource it properly. They need to be resourced properly. Unfortunately because it is a service that is behind walls and hidden, it is just somewhere they think they can cut quite easily and the general public aren’t going to notice.”