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Scotland: More suicides at Cornton Vale

01 November 2001

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At the end of October two women committed suicide in Cornton Vale prison. Between 1995 and 1998 eight women hanged themselves in the prison. An inquiry at the time found that the regime "was wholly inadequate and inappropriate". Since then the number of women in the prison has continued to rise to record levels. At the time of the latest suicides there were 247 in a prison designed for 178. Up to 90% of the women have used drugs while many others have been jailed for not paying fines, prostitution and shoplifting. The record numbers of women imprisoned in Scotland is reflected in the figures for England and Wales. At the end of October there were a record 68,127 in prison overall while the number of women passed the 4,000 mark, a rise of more than 200 per cent since 1991.

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