Prison riot repair bill could be £2m

THE bill to repair the damage caused by rioting inmates at HMP Birmingham could be as much as £2 million.

All locks at the Winson Green prison will have to be changed after hundreds of prisoners ran riot last Friday. Keys stolen from an officer were recovered but there were fears copies could have been made.

Operator G4S will repair costs, according Secretary Liz Truss. cover the to Justice

More than 460 prisoners have since been moved out of the prison.

The riot, described as the worst since Strangeways 26 years ago, should be investigated by an independent body, according to former chief inspector of prisons Lord Ramsbotham.

He pointed to the “masterly” report produced after Strangeways, in which two people died and hundreds more were injured over the course of 25 days.

Justice Secretary Liz Truss said Sarah Payne, adviser to the independent chief inspector of probation and former director of the Welsh prison service, would lead the investigation.

Ms Truss ordered “a full investigation” into the riots, insisting: “The perpetrators of this incident will feel the full force of the law.”

Labour said the Government was warned months ago that riots were likely and demanded to know what action it took.