Prisons: Education and Training

Lord Howarth of Newport Excerpts

Thursday 3rd April 2014 Lords Chamber

[Lord Patel of Bradford (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Howarth of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Baroness Bakewell (Lab)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Faulks]

The noble and learned Lord is referring to the Strangeways report. I entirely accept that rehabilitation should be a key part of prison. The noble and learned Lord will recall that the transforming rehabilitation reforms mean that those serving short sentences for the first time will now be able to obtain support after leaving prison and will be enabled by means of resettlement prisons to have some continuity in the support that they receive inside and outside. I accept his general observations. It is a matter very much to be borne in mind.

[Lord Howarth of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords, whatever the Justice Secretary is now saying, is not the reality of the situation that his policy is preventing family and friends sending books to prisoners? Does not a state which treats its prisoners with gratuitous harshness and which seeks to suppress the life of the mind put itself and society to shame?