Prisoners to be gassed to cut expenses?

Tuesday May 01, 2007 01:57

by Gan ainm - ABC Belfast

British prisons minister Paul Goggins has announced that automatic 50% remission for prisoners in the north is to end, on the same day he also announced that screws would be issued with CS spray.

On May 24th state minister for prisons Paul Goggins announced that screws here were to be issued with what he called 'incapacitising spray'.
On the same day it was announced that 'release procedures' would also change by this time next year, basically 50% remission is about to end.
There is absolutely no doubt that both announcements are connected, as due to the end of remission the prison population in the north is expected to swell by at least 15%.
What are we to make of this? heres a thought. The cost of keeping a prisoner in prison is already £85,000 a year, one can only imagine what the new arrangements will cost.
According to the Irish News the new assembley will have to find £20 million from somewhere (water charges anyone?).
Following Rosanne Ervines (and many others) suicide case and the exposure of institutionalised cruelty within the Prison service here, can anybody doubt that costs of extra staff are to be kept down by the casual use of CS spray on prisoners?
What does this mean for the prisoner? Paul Goggins says that it will only be used on what he called 'violent prisoners', but anybody who has been through the system knows only too well that to a screw a violent prisoner is one who doesnt 'comply', that can simply mean failing to obey a 'direct order' which in turn can mean something as simple as 'still complaining' or 'not shutting up' when told.
So prisoners are to be gassed to keep expenses down and the upper class feeling safe.
The prison service expects society to look the other way, the Anarchist Black Cross wont www.myspace.com/belfastabc

According to the Irish News,

"Northern Ireland's prison population is expected to swell by 15% after the introduction of tougher sentencing tariffs and release procedures.
However, as each prisoner costs the north's taxpayers £85,000 a year, the devolved administration will face a major financial burden of arounf £20 million. Northern Ireland's figure is higher because of high-security measures to deal with the parlimilitary threat. The lack of such facilities in the north(open prisons) is seen as another reason why prisoner numbers are expected to swell. Fewer inmates will be deemed to leave under the stricter criteria because they have become so institutionalised. The tariffs were expected to be presented in the Criminal Justice Order 2007 this summer but the process is not on schedule. It is now unlikely to happen before this time next year.
Senior figures in the criminal justice system have warned about the dangers of grafting on a 'one-size-fits-all' policy already in use in Britain where, it is argued, the pressures are very different..."

Extract
25/04/07