The Debate: should we release female prisoners to make space for men? Opinion Could an answer to the prison overcrowding crisis be to let out women offenders? Two writers go head to head Yes: We are locking up women who’ve been failed by the system Right now, prisons contain women who shouldn’t be there. Prison doesn’t work and it harms women. Almost 70 per cent of women in [...]
Prison porridge costs taxpayers £165m a year Politics Porridge, baked beans and other prison food cost taxpayers a combined £165m a year, Morning Wire can reveal, as questions around spending efficiencies loom over the Ministry of Justice. The government has signed a blockbuster £826.7m deal with a leading catering distributor to supply food for prisoners and staff. BFS Group, a subsidiary of South [...]
Asylum seeker released in error seen in London area, police say News An asylum seeker accidentally released from prison was last seen in the London area, police said, as officers urged anyone who spots him to call 999 immediately. Ethiopian national Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, who had been living at the Bell Hotel in Epping, was jailed for 12 months in September for the sexual assault of [...]
Ministry of Justice sacks 849 staff over misconduct in three years September 24, 2025 The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has dismissed 849 staff members over the last three years for alleged misconduct. A Freedom of Information Request, shared with Morning Wire, revealed there has been an increase in the number of individuals receiving a penalty as a result of the conduct and discipline process at the MoJ, with a [...]
What can Britain learn from El Salvador about policing the riots? August 21, 2024 El Salvador’s president has transformed his country’s fortunes and won an electoral landslide with his zero-tolerance approach to gangs. We should take a similar approach to the hardened criminals involved in the riots, says James Price Mercy, justice, grace. Heavy themes for a Wednesday morning, more often dealt with from the pulpit than the pages [...]
Emergency move to avoid jail overcrowding may be used soon as rioters sentenced August 18, 2024 The government could trigger an emergency plan to avoid prison overcrowding “at some point next week” as rioters are sentenced, according to the Prison Officers’ Association. It followed reports in The Observer that the government could be about to trigger Operation Early Dawn. The long-standing contingency measure allows defendants to be held in police cells [...]
Do long prison sentences work? Economics has the answer August 15, 2024 Sentences deter different groups in different ways - and behavioural economics shows how, says Paul Ormerod
Life after prison: Battling homelessness and unemployment July 25, 2024 “People do come out of prison, that’s the whole point. So what’s next?” Lucy Kenningham speaks to ex-offender Jason Barnfather
The Notebook: Can Labour reform public services? The early signs are encouraging July 17, 2024 Today’s King’s Speech is when Labour’s airy rhetoric of change hits the hard reality of legislative grind, writes Neil Bennett.
Emergency plans to release prisoners early to ease overcrowding to be revealed July 11, 2024 The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is set to announce its emergency plans to free up prison spaces in order to tackle the issue of overcrowding.