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The Ministry of Justice has announced a £110 million investment, funded through existing resources, to transform unused areas within prisons such as office spaces, laundry rooms, and storage rooms into additional cells. This move aims to increase prison capacity without the need for new building projects.
The justice secretary emphasized to the BBC that early release of prisoners should not be mistaken for granting them “freedom,” highlighting that victims will have input on the conditions imposed on those criminals. When questioned about the logistics of converting laundry rooms into cells, particularly concerning where inmates’ clothes would be washed, Norris assured on BBC Breakfast that the operational needs of prisons would still be fully met. He described the approach as a “creative look” at the estate, focusing on better utilization of existing space.
Regarding the scale of added capacity, Norris anticipated the number of new places created by repurposing existing areas within prisons to fall “somewhere in the middle” of 200 and 900. However, the chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association, Mark Fairhurst, voiced concerns about staffing, stating: “You can create as much additional space as you like, and build as many new prisons as you like, but where are the staff coming from to supervise people? Nobody wants to be a prison officer anymore.”
Prisons in England and Wales are operating at about 97% capacity. Additionally, an early release program plans to gradually release roughly 4,500 prisoners starting in October. Following a campaign from the family of PC Andrew Harper, the prime minister confirmed on BBC Breakfast that those convicted of manslaughter would be excluded from this release scheme. Further expansion of prison space is expected through increased deportations of foreign nationals and the release of some inmates serving indefinite sentences. As of June 30, government data indicated 10,134 foreign nationals were in custody, with 3,283 on remand and therefore ineligible for deportation. Deportations of foreign offenders reached 5,962 in the year leading to June, marking the highest rate since 2017 and a 12% rise compared to the previous year
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