UK has highest prison population in the EU, report says
Written by News on 14/03/2017
The UK has the highest prison population in the European Union, according to a new study.
In total, there were 95,629 people behind bars in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as of September 2015, figures published by the Council of Europe show.
Only Russia (642,470) and Turkey (173,522) had a higher number of prisoners.
The report said England and Wales had a prison population rate of 148.3 inmates per 100,000 citizens – well above the Europe-wide average (134.7) and rates in France (98.3), Italy (86.4) and Germany (77.4).
It added that a relatively high proportion of prisoners in England and Wales had been convicted of assault and battery (16%), rape (8.5%) and other sexual offences (7.3%) – compared to Europe-wide averages of 9.3%, 3.9% and 3.7% respectively.
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Meanwhile, figures show England and Wales also had one of the highest numbers of prisoners serving life (7,439) – more than four times the amount in Russia (1,804).
In recent months, Justice Secretary Liz Truss has faced calls to reduce the number of prisoners to 45,000 – a level last seen in 1990.
Council of Europe secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland said the organisation’s report showed alternative sentences "can help to reintegrate offenders and tackle overcrowding".
However, Ms Truss has described slashing jail sentences to reduce prison populations as a "dangerous quick fix".
Last month, she announced a package of measures aimed at reforming jails and driving down re-offending rates.
Under the reforms, prisons are designated as places for "reform and rehabilitation", rather than simply housing prisoners.
The Government has also announced pay rises for thousands of prison officers following a spate of prison riots, along with a record number of assaults, suicides and self-harm incidents in jails.
(c) Sky News 2017: UK has highest prison population in the EU, report says
