Felicity Gerry and Andrea Coomber respond to Bill Keller on the Americanisation of UK prisons in Prospect Magazine

Picture of Felicity Gerry KC
Felicity Gerry KC

Legal. Media. KC.

Travesty of justice

Bill Keller’s deep exploration of the prison system in England and Wales is a shameful indictment of those responsible for this beleaguered public service. They must know that it is in everyone’s interest to build a rehabilitative culture, not one of hopelessness that throws up endless barriers for those safe to release.

Some will say that it is time to worry when a journalist such as Keller, with such considerable experience of documenting the horrors of the US prison system, finds so many similarities with the UK’s. In truth, the worrying should have begun long ago, when successive governments pushing hyperventilating “tough on crime” rhetoric allowed the UK prison population to double. Campaign organisations have raised the alarm repeatedly, but politicians, journalists and judges have—for the most part—looked away.

 

Excerpt from Prospect Magazine’s Letters: October 2023 – read full article here