UK’s jails file 74 assaults every single day as Tories accused of failing employees and victims
An alarming 74 assaults take place every day in the country’s prisons, shocking figures show.
Research by the House of Commons Library found that in 2023 there were 26,912 assaults – equivalent to 315 for every 1,000 prisoners. Of these, 3,205 were deemed to be serious assaults, an average of eight every day.
More than a third were attacks on prison staff, the grim data shows. The Tories have been accused of failing workers after years of neglect.
FIgures reveal that prison staff suffered 9,204 assaults – an average of 25 a day, while 825 were classed as serious. There was a 28% rise in all cases compared to the previous year, with assaults on staff up by more than a quarter.
Lib Dem Justice spokesman Josh Babarinde said: “With this staggering number of assaults and rates of re-offending through the roof, the Conservatives have left a system that is failing prison staff, failing victims, and failing our communities.”
He added: “Their neglect of our justice system is unforgivable, and their former Ministers should hang their heads in shame for this shambolic legacy.
“This is a crisis that needs to be gripped by the new government with the utmost urgency. It is no wonder that hard-working prison officers are leaving in their droves when many drive to work fearing they may leave in the back of an ambulance.”
It comes as ex-Tory Justice Secretary David Gauke said Britain should move thousands of inmates into low-security open prisons. Mr Gauke, who is conducting a review of sentencing policy, urged ministers to follow Spain’s lead.
This would see a much greater proportion of convicted criminals are free to work and study outside prison walls during the day. Wandsworth prison saw by far the most assaults of any prison, recording 1,044 total assaults with more than half of these, 571, being on staff.
Berwyn has the next highest assaults with 783 and then Thameside with 667. The Lib Dems, who uncovered the figures, said the Tories have “left our prisons in utter chaos”.
