Prison population to rise by 3,000 in the next five years

THE prison population in England and Wales is set to increase by 3,000 over the next five years because of tougher sentencing, says the Ministry of Justice.

Although the number of inmates fell this year, the trend of longer jail terms could mean 3,200 more people behind bars by 2023, with the total prison population going up from 83,165 to 86,400. There was, the ministry said, a 20 per cent chance the number could exceed 88,400 by June 2022 and a five per cent chance it might even hit 90,900.

The ministry also said the number of inmates aged over 60 was set to rise from 5,009 to 5,600 by 2022, driven mainly by an increase in the number of older people being imprisoned for sex offences. Growth in their number is being projected not only because of an increase in sexual offence cases since 2012 but because more were being imprisoned than were being released.

The prison population issue is compounded by the fact that those offenders tend to receive longer sentences.

The figures came as the Government’s handling of prisons was put under scrutiny after it had to take over the privately run HMP Birmingham following a damning inspection report.