trust – tolerance – self-sufficiency
Catching criminals is pointless if they are given fines which they can neglect to pay, or given derisory terms in jail where they can meet and learn from other criminals and become drug addicts if they are not already, thereby ensuring that on release they are both more likely to re-offend and be better at it. Given the complete lack of focus in what is expected of the prison system its constant failure is inevitable. Until it is reformed, building more prisons, apart from turning the country into a prison island, a Gulag, will be throwing good money after bad – as ever, our money.
What do victims and society gain when criminals are imprisoned? Nothing. There is a brief respite from their activities but as the great majority re-offend very soon after release there is no long-term benefit. Worse, after having suffered financial loss at the hands of these people, we have our taxes increased to keep them locked up, doing nothing – a double burden.
The prison system should provide the following in order of importance:
- Protection. Some people have to be taken out of normal society for our protection – they are few in number and relatively easily identified and dealt with.
- Reparation. This will be difficult but it is crucial. Criminals should know for a certainty that when they commit an offence they will literally have to pay for it in full – including the cost of the investigation and trail – by cash or useful work – in prison, or out of it. Systems could be established whereby businesses could notify the Prison Service of any labour needs. For less serious crimes, the principle of bespoke sentencing appropriate to the individual crime should become the norm and there must be an end to the practice of writing off ‘uncollectable’ fines. All this will require new and imaginative thinking, but that is no excuse for continuing to blunder along helplessly and hopelessly as at present.
- Rehabilitation. Where mental health has been a factor in the commission of a crime, this should be properly treated. Basic literacy and numeracy should be a condition for release and appropriate teaching must be available for those prisoners who need it. Good behaviour in prison should be the expected norm, not something to be specially rewarded, and bad behaviour should be punished by increased sentences. It is quite possible that such a regime and the need to work to pay off the harm they have done will have a considerable rehabilitating effect in its own right.
HELP AND INFORMATION WANTED
- Details of the number of people in jail, the annual cost of this and the rate of re-offending.
- Any further ideas for work that can be given to prisoners.
Hi Roger,
Having only discovered this site yesterday I need to spend time reading it.
But as a first little offering, might I draw your attention to the writings of Peter Hitchens of the Mail on Sunday? Just two days ago I read a very ( in my opinion) well constructed and intelligent overview of prisons and punishment on his blog. And other matters, the guy writes a lot, but I’m sure this is grandmother and sucking eggs territory!
A small point, but could you persuade your comment writers to read what they have written before sending it? I hate to say this but some of the typos and spelling mistakes are worthy of BNP supporters!
Regards, Mike
REPLY
Thanks for the comments, Mike. Hope you find enough in this site to encourage you to help us to do something about the current grim political/economic/ecological situation.
Peter Hitchens does write some good stuff at times, but he tends to blame everything on the 60s, the abolition of hanging and various wishy-washy Home Secretaries. There’s an element of truth there, but I don’t find it particularly relevant or helpful. We are where we are and we have to deal with it. Right now, the major problem is a two-party system which has substantially failed and has lost the trust of the people – spectacularly reflected in the turnouts for the last three General Elections. So what I am after is not only people who can think for themselves, but people who can DO things, who can solve problems.
You took a chance criticizing other writers’ spelling :-). Whenever I do that I usually make some clanging error of my own. I have to confess that while I’m not a bad writer, I’m a poor line editor. Still, I stick by my quote from A J Ayer – why would I mind being wrong when someone can show me that I am?
Hope to hear from you again. I’d value all help and just spreading the word is important. We’ve a very limited time to get this Party well into the public domain. Not the least we need Parliamentary candidates.
Best wishes – Roger Taylor
November 20, 2009 @ 2:07 pm