https://theconversation.com/prisons-will-only-improve-if-the-public-demands-change-93157 by Sophie Ellis, 2018
“The state of prisons in England and Wales is dangerous and deeply concerning. According to the government’s own figures, assaults rose from 9,440 in 2000 to 28,165 in 2017 – an average of 77 per day. Self-harm levels are the highest ever recorded. A report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons in 2017 showed that living conditions are filthy. Prisoners lack basic sanitary supplies. The daily food budget per prisoner is £2.02.”
Ending with
“Improving prisoner welfare is not a case of being “soft”, or doing an injustice to victims. It is a pragmatic decision. It is an investment in the safety of our friends and families, by reducing repeat offending and preventing further victimisation. Currently the repeat offending rate stands at 49% for adults released from custody in England and Wales. In Norway – famed for its relatively safe and decent prisons – it is 20%. The director of Halden Prison in Norway neatly sums up the pragmatism of investing in prisons: “Do you want people who are angry – or people who are rehabilitated?”
The approach to imprisonment in England and Wales has to change. And it will not change unless the public become sufficiently outraged to demand that the government take real action. That outrage will not happen until there is a more rounded public understanding of those who are housed inside our prisons. When the public brings their voices to bear on prison reform, ministers will have to listen.”