ENGLAND AND WALES: Prison numbers rising
01 May 2001
There are currently 8.6 million people in prison worldwide. The USA accounts for a quarter of this number. Its rate of imprisonment is now five times as large compared with 1972 and is over 450 per 100,000 of the population or 680 per 100,000 when the population of local jails is included. This phenomenon of "mass imprisonment" has disproportionately impacted on African Americans to the point where one in three African American men aged 20 to 29 are now in custody or under supervision. In addition the country now locks up more black women than the total population of any one major western European country.
This extraordinary explosion in the American prison population has impacted on the debates and policies concerning the prison population in England and Wales. Tony Blair and Jack Straw's close relationship with the American government and their admiration for the Clinton administration's hard?line law and order policies (which the new Bush administration has reinforced) has been well documented. It is therefore not surprising that the prison population in England and Wales has risen again to the point where the country is second only to Portugal in western Europe in its rate of imprisonment. It is estimated that by 2002 it will be first in western Europe and that by 2007 it will be second in the western world in its rate of imprisonment. The prison population has risen by 50% since 1991. Since 1979, 24 new prisons have been built and an additional 12,000 places have been added to the system.
Black people now account for more than 20 per cent of the 66,000 currently incarcerated which is the highest since records began. The proportion of black and Asian people in prison has nearly doubled since the 1970s. In addition between 1993 and 1999 the female prison population doubled compared with a 45% increase for men. More people are now sent to prison than in Saudi Arabia, China and Burma, countries that are consistently condemned for their human rights abuses. The government is planning to build another 5,370 places by 2004. Home Office projections indicate that by 2008, at a minimum, the prison population will rise to 70,200. Another projection indicates that if the custody rate increased at 4% for males and 9% for females but sentence lengths stay at 2000 levels (which is highly unlikely) then the population will rise to 83,500 by 2008.
It was against this background that the Halliday report ? Making Sentences Work ? was published on 5 July. Halliday, formerly Director of Criminal Justice Policy at the Home Office, began his review in May 2000 and reported to the Home Secretary in May 2001. In commenting on the report the new Home Secretary David Blunkett broke with the hard?line rhetoric of his immediate predecessors by raising the issue of the rehabilitation of offenders and for the need to develop programmes that attempt to achieve this goal. Those serving sentences of 12 months or less could now be released after serving half of their sentence and be supervised in the community for the other half of their sentence. In addition some offenders may not be imprisoned unless they breach supervision rules. Although this might lead to fewer minor offenders being sent to prison in the first instance, the prison population could still rise, as has happened in America, if these offenders breach their community sentences.
The long?term population is likely to increase under these proposals because those sentenced for violent offences will no longer be released after serving two thirds of their sentence. These offenders will be released only after a risk assessment exercise carried out by the Parole Board. If considered a risk to the public then the offender could face another 10 years under supervision. In addition the so?called 100,000 "persistent offenders" who it is alleged account for 50% of recorded crime will receive tougher sentences. Furthermore, the identification of this group is based on an unpublished Home Offi