Inside Time

Kemi Badenoch told the Conservative conference that the party would build 50,000 more prison places/Credit: Conservative Party I fear that, at this moment, there is a lack of thinking going on over the country's prison policies. We seem to be in a pre-election mood, where considered plans are not wanted because politicians are scrambling for headlines and rolling in the dirt digging for votes. We are already holding political party auctions to build the most prison places.

Credit: Andy Aitchison We all know what abuse is, right? Verbal, physical, racial. But there are also other types of abuse. Abuse of trust, abuse of power in prison. Anyone can commit abuse, whether in verbal, physical or racial form, but what affects prisoners most is when it is done by the ones in uniform who hold the power. Take nickings (adjudications). When a professional lies to your face, that's one of the worst abuses there is. This can become psychological abuse.

Credit: Image generated by AI/ Gemini I write in response to the letter titled 'Incontinence in Prison' (Mailbag, September). Dealing with incontinence is difficult and many of us struggle mentally, i.e. anxiety, shame and embarrassment. There is no real support or understanding around incontinence in prison. Prisoners take the p*** and make fun if they know or they see you collecting pads, nappies or pants. But the main issue is the prison.

Credit: Andy Aitchison On news bulletins over the past few years, there have regularly been items saying how many people have not claimed a certain benefit. If they know the figures, they must have identified each individual. If that is the case, then why don't they just pay the benefits of those people identified? We have, imprisoned, between 3,000 and 4,000 state pensioners who do not receive their state pension, as the government classes it as a benefit.

Credit: Andy Aitchison The Government are crying that there are no spaces in prison. Well, whose fault is that? Oh yeah, it's yours. You're the ones who keep changing your minds. Please can you explain why it is so easy to bang someone up with no hard or real evidence and just a victim's words? I sit here with evidence to say I didn't commit my crime, but that's not enough. Many other people are in the same position. If the justice system is broken, it's because you broke it.

Credit: Andy Aitchison The Prison Service uses the cheapest suppliers for our canteen, then adds more onto the prices because they feel like they can, which in my eyes is wrong and a downright disgrace. Greedy #1 governors - if you continue to do this, then all prisons need to give us a good wage to survive on each week. Prison food is not up to standard. Ingredients come via Bidfood, an overseas company.

Credit: Image generated by AI/ Gemini At what point did the CCRC (Criminal Cases Review Commission) become the judge? I'm awaiting a decision from the commissioners at the CCRC. I have received a letter that states they will decide: 1. Whether there is anything new and important, 2. Whether there is a real possibility that an appeal against conviction might succeed. They are looking at two issues: 1. Failure to disclose by the Crown Prosecution Service, 2. My diagnosis of a neurodiverse condition.

Credit: Image generated by AI/ Gemini A would-be drug smuggler was caught after prison security staff noticed he had arrived for a social visit wearing two pairs of trousers. When challenged, the man ran away barefoot and then gave a bizarre explanation for the contraband found during his inept smuggling attempt at HMP Forest Bank. Manchester Crown Court heard that the 35-year-old man went to the prison in Salford on 24 September, 2024, accompanying an unnamed woman who was visiting a relative.

HMP Wymott. Credit: Andy Aitchison A prisoner at HMP Wymott died after his worsening mental health was not identified and treated despite repeatedly telling staff he was having thoughts of self-harm, according to a report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO). Karl Saunders, 51, was found unresponsive in his cell at Wymott on 28 September, 2025. He had been serving an 11-year sentence after being convicted in June 2024 before being transferred to Wymott the following month.

Credit: Image generated by AI/ Gemini A 30-year-old prison officer at HMP Gartree has been jailed for six years after pleading guilty to five offences of smuggling drugs into the prison. For four years, detectives in the East Midlands Special Operations Unit's Regional Prison Intelligence Unit (RPIU) investigated the man's involvement in supplying illicit items to prisoners, after he was arrested in October 2022.