Assaults on prison officers are up almost 40 per cent with a tragedy now ‘inevitable’, inspectors warned yesterday
Prisons are seeing a 'startling' increase in violence sparked by a surge in convicts taking synthetic drugs
PRISONS are seeing a “startling” increase in violence with a tragedy now “inevitable”, inspectors warned yesterday.
Assaults on officers are up 38 per cent — sparked by a surge in convicts taking synthetic drugs.
There has also been a “staggering” slump in standards in youth jails, with assaults and self-harming in 2016 double that of six years ago.
Not a single facility is safe, the report warned. Suicide and self-harm in female prisons has risen dramatically, too.
The Chief Inspector of Prisons also revealed lags are often held in their cells for 22 hours a day.
Former top Met cop Peter Clarke said he warned last year that jails had become “unacceptably violent”.
He added: “The situation has not improved. It’s worse.”
The Ministry of Justice insisted welfare was “an absolute priority”.
