General   (General discussion, talk about anything.)

Hello Wiganyankeeron

There is method to this (seeming) madness.

www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk

22 February 2008 - Prisons bust

Prisons face a new crisis...After a series of weeks in which the prison population has repeatedly hit record figures, the number of people in prison is now 82,068. This is significantly above the level that the Prison Service considers to be safe.

Prison Reform Trust's seven point plan to end needless overcrowding:
Further details are given on the site.

1. Treat Mental Illness - Stop using prisons as asylums.

2. Tackle Addictions

3. Avoid Prison for Vulnerable Women - Stop sending women to prison for petty offences.

4. Deport Many Foreign National Prisoners

5. End Child Imprisonment - Prison is acting as a college of crime.

6. Use Effective Community Alternatives

7. Provide Strong Political Leadership

2. Tackle Addictions

Locking up drug addicts and hazardous drinkers almost never breaks the grips of a serious addiction and almost always submerges people further in the world of criminality. Britain is scandalously short of community resources to get people off drugs and drink and the public is paying the price for years of this head in the sand approach. Most acquisitive crime is fuelled by drugs. Most violent crime and public disorder offences are driven by alcohol. Residential drug treatment places at £35,000 a year will save millions compared to over £40,000 a year for a revolving door prison place.
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So, locking addicts up is not the answer.

What makes me angry is "Britain is scandalously short of community resources to get people off drugs and drink".