HMP Weare, the last 400-person prison ship in Portland, Dorset, was decommissioned in 2005. Credit: Barry Batchelor/PA Archive
Ministers should consider bringing back prison courts to ensure criminals don't escape jail time, former Attorney General said.
Sir Robert Buckland said there are «creative» ways to solve the problem prison overcrowding should include HMP ships, former military bases, and «virtual» prisons where convicted criminals are kept under effective «house arrest» by tagging and GPS technology.
His comment came as it emerged that drug dealers, violent criminals, thieves and dangerous drivers were spared jail time because judges ruled the prisons were too overcrowded to contain.
Prisons are only 1,000 fewer than the maximum 85,000 prisoners they can safely hold, meaning judges have been told they must consider prison overcrowding when sentencing convicted criminals. As a result, offenders are given suspended sentences or communal sentences rather than being jailed.
Sir Robert said he was «concerned» as it undermines the independence of judges, adding: «Pressure on places of detention should never be a factor that should determine the sentencing of a particular type or level.”
He said the prison ships were in use until the early 2000s, when Labor sold them. HMP Weare, the last one in Portland, Dorset, with a capacity of up to 400 people, was abolished in 2005, although a barge with 500 asylum seekers should be in the port from May.
In May, the Port of Portland will receive a barge with 500 asylum seekers. Photo: Bibby Marine Ltd/PA
“These options for barracks and prison ships need to be considered,” said Sir Robert. «I'd rather see creative ways we can open up emergency opportunities by trying to find alternative provision even though you're competing with immigration.»
Ministers have privately discussed the return of prison ships, although sources in the government was told the idea was not «going forward».
The ships are controversial because of echoes of the Victorian era, when convicts were kept in «terrible hulks» — decommissioned warships anchored in the mud off Woolwich, southeast London .
Sir Robert added: “Essentially, part of the solution is to find better ways to manage prisoners in society with proper supervision. For example, you can have a virtual prison using technologies like tags and GPS where you can effectively put someone under house arrest.”
Dominic Raab, Minister of Justice, has already been forced to instruct police cells pick up convicts, allow early release of criminals, including dog tag robbers, and accelerate the tracking of prisoners to open prisons to alleviate the overcrowding crisis.
Lord Justice Edis, senior presiding judge of England and Wales, has asked judges to put fewer convicted felons in prison after Mr Raab wrote to Lord Burnett, Lord Chief Justice, warning of the impact current levels of prison overcrowding are having on prisoners.
The criminals who escaped prison as a result include a prisoner who splashed boiling water in the face of a prison guard, a DHL driver convicted of seven counts of theft, a drug dealer who sold cocaine and heroin, a truck driver who attacked a truck driver in a traffic accident, and a carpenter. , who caused a high-speed crash to escape the police.
Sir Bob Neal, chairman of the House of Commons Justice Committee, said: “This is a bad signal. This undermines trust in justice, which is an important part of the sentencing process.
“It puts judges in an awkward position. They must be independent and render an appropriate verdict on the basis of all the circumstances of the case. It's become harder for them to do so.»
Priity Patel, the former home secretary, said: «Public safety should never be at risk, the courts should send fraudsters to jail, and the government should make sure more places are available in prisons.»
A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: «We are aiming for the biggest expansion of prison space in over a century — investing £4bn to provide 20,000 additional places.» /p>
«We are experiencing short-term pressure on the prison area, so we are building 1,000 rapid deployment cells and have activated Operation Protect as a temporary measure to increase capacity.»
The criminals spared the prison due to prison overcrowding. according to Inside Time and Telegraph
— Aeri Ali was given a six-month suspended sentence after throwing the boiling contents of his mug into the face of a prison guard at HMP Maidstone. The officer suffered first-degree, palm-sized burns to his face, forcing him to take off work for a week and a half while his injuries healed.
Carpenter Anthony Wilson received a six-month suspended prison sentence after a high speed chase fleeing police when he accelerated to 80 mph in 20 mph zones, jumped a red light and crashed head-on into another vehicle. He admitted reckless driving and failed to provide a blood sample for analysis after a nine-minute chase.
Police were forced to pull an unconscious Whiston from the wreckage of his car after a collision in the Bristol suburb of St. George's and noticed the smell of alcohol on his breath, the court was told. .
— Truck driver Fabian Greco was given an 18-week suspended sentence after a road rage incident in Dartford, Kent, when he pushed another trucker to the ground and then kept punching and kicking him until others came to his aid. He was charged with assault and battery.
— Drug dealer Jordon Axtell, Greater Lace, Oxford, was given a two-year suspended sentence for supplying heroin and crack cocaine and for possession of a knife object.
He bought drugs in bulk and was caught by the police with 10 bandages and a knife. A search of his partner's apartment found 81 more packages of cocaine. He also had a set of digital scales that are commonly used to weigh small quantities of drugs.
— Jamie John McClelland was given an eight-week suspended prison sentence after being caught driving while on suspension twice in 28 days and without insurance.
He was first seen weaving in an alley on the Isle of Wight on January 29, 2022, passed a breath test, but police found he had been disqualified. On February 26, he was caught again.
The prosecution described the offense as «a complete violation of the law.»
— DHL delivery driver Stephen Black has been given a 10-month suspended jail sentence for stealing over £53,000 worth of packages in just three months from the warehouse where he worked. He was caught after a CCTV camera caught him acting suspiciously while DHL employees were investigating missing packages.
Criminals spared prison due to prison overcrowding, according to an Inside Time and Telegraph study
— Airy Ali was given a six-month suspended sentence after throwing the boiling contents of his mug into the face of a prison guard at HMP Maidstone. The officer suffered palm-sized first-degree burns to his face, forcing him to take a week and a half leave of absence while his injuries healed.
— Anthony Wilson, a carpenter, was given a six-month suspended prison sentence after, during a high speed chase while fleeing police, he accelerated to 80 mph in 20 mph zones, ran a red light and crashed into another car. He admitted reckless driving and failed to provide a blood sample for analysis after a nine-minute chase.
Police were forced to pull an unconscious Whiston from the wreckage of his car after a collision in the Bristol suburb of St. George's and noticed the smell of alcohol on his breath, the court was told. .
— Truck driver Fabian Greco was given an 18-week suspended sentence after a road rage incident in Dartford, Kent, when he pushed another trucker to the ground and then kept punching and kicking him until others came to his aid. He was charged with assault by battery.
— Drug dealer Jordon Axtell, Greater Leys, Oxford, was sentenced to two years' probation for supplying heroin and cocaine and for possession of a knife object.
He bought drugs in bulk and was caught by the police with 10 bandages and a knife. A search of his partner's apartment found 81 more packages of cocaine. He also had a set of digital scales that are commonly used to weigh small quantities of drugs.
— Jamie John McClelland was given an eight-week suspended prison sentence after being caught driving while on suspension twice in 28 days and without insurance.
He was first seen weaving in an alley on the Isle of Wight on January 29, 2022, passed a breath test, but police found he had been disqualified. On February 26, he was caught again.
The prosecution described the offense as «a complete violation of the law.»
— DHL delivery driver Stephen Black was suspended for 10 months. sentenced to prison after stealing over £53,000 worth of parcels in just three months from a warehouse where he worked. He was caught after a CCTV camera caught him acting suspiciously while DHL was investigating missing packages.
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