Prisons

Debate between Lord Clarke of Nottingham and Richard Burgon

Wednesday 25th January 2017 Commons Chamber

[Richard Burgon]

My right hon. Friend makes a very valuable point about rehabilitation, a subject to which I will return.

[Mr Kenneth Clarke (Rushcliffe) (Con)]

The hon. Gentleman quite rightly says that there is, as I think everybody will acknowledge, a serious crisis in our prisons, which at the moment are overcrowded slums and breeding grounds for crime. He sets out a rather interesting range of options for tackling this but, with respect, his motion merely concentrates on the Prison Officers Association’s answer, which is to spend more money and hire more prison officers, probably with improved pay and conditions. Does he have any views on the range of options that includes reducing the number of prisoners by addressing foolish sentencing policies so that there is room for the rehabilitation measures recommended by the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Frank Field)?

[Richard Burgon]

I thank the right hon. and learned Gentleman for that constructive contribution. We are talking about far more than just staffing, so I will touch on sentencing and prisoner numbers later.