Very illuminating...

The Daily Telegraph (see post below) announced that there has been a Labour U-Turn in sentencing because its policies meant that too many were being sent to prison. The Guardian also announced "Fewer criminals to be sent to prison". Which sounds a sensible approach. It might be a sensible approach if all those rowing in the leaking Labour boat rowed in the same direction. For example, in the Guardian, Lord Falconer is quoted as saying: "It's not that we want less people in prison or we want more people in prison". Why is Lord Falconer even mouthing off at all on this topic? The split between the Home Office and Ministry of Justice is not yet complete. And, the responsible minister for prisons is John Reid, but there is not a peep out of him. That I do find interesting.

The Daily Telegraph has updated its story, to read "Police get more powers in law and order review". I covered this angle here. One of the problems of our overcrowded prisons is that too many are sent there who do not need to be in there. It is no good saying that there are too many mentally ill prisoners, but that there are no facilities out in the community to deal with them therefore we simply lock them up out of society's view. Nor is it the way forward to develop special courts and "hybrid" prisons to deal with them. We already have a hybrid system! The failing is with care in the community, and the lack of resources to pay for it. I cannot help wondering that the money wasted on the Iraq war could have been better spent on this much more needed facility.

Once again David Davis is spouting off the cuff remarks without saying what his policies would be. The same goes for Nick Clegg. I note that none of these so-called Law and Order big-wigs; Reid, Davis and Clegg have dared to accept my challenge.