Our prisons need radical reform, not more of the same failed policies | Letters

Readers on the crisis in the criminal justice system that has brought the prison and the probation service to the verge of collapse

Samira Shackle is correct to say that Labour and the Tories have been ignoring the crisis in the criminal justice system (The prison and court systems are on the verge of collapse. Why aren’t Labour or the Tories talking about it?, 30 June). But her point about the need for major investment in it is debatable. Even when expenditure was high, in the pre-cuts era, the system still experienced regular crises. The cuts have not caused the current crisis, they have intensified it. And even though budgets have been cut, prison expenditure was still over £18bn between 2015 and 2020.

Fundamentally transforming the criminal injustice system should be the goal. Building more prisons has failed in the past, so disinvesting from the current building programme and investing in radical alternatives to prison, operating within a broader system based on social welfare for all, democratic accountability and social justice, is the answer to the crisis, not more of the same failed policies.
Joe Sim
Emeritus professor, Liverpool John Moores University

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