John Reid has, according to ITV News, given the order to transfer prisoners to Open Prisons and Police cells due to the fact that our prisons our now almost completely full.
I know he has to do something, but given that we lock up a higher percentage of our populaton than any other country in Europe and have the highest re-offending rate, isn't it time we re-examined the policy of locking people up without rehabilitating them ?
There is supposed to be rehabilitation of offenders in UK prisons, but due to overcrowding and a lack of resources for it, it is completely ineffective. Compare this to some former Eastern European countries for example like Slovenia, where rehabilitation is seen as the most important thing for prisoners when they are sentenced for the very first time. Other countries too take the view that if you can rehabilitate offenders after their first offence, you will stop the second, third, etc, etc. It's not all carrot though, because those who do not take the many options to rehabiliate themselves are then treated to longer and less luxurious stays in prison when they are convicted more than once.
Why don't UK prisons teach prisoners a trade ? Bricklaying, plumbing, electrician, plasterer, you name it, we have a shortage of people who can do these jobs in the UK, all these trade pay well, yet we spend all our time locking people up, failing completely to rehabilitate them then let them out do commit the same crime again and again.
Come on John Reid, sort it out !
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