Thousands more ex-frontline soldiers in the criminal justice system than previously believed
The number of former soldiers who have been convicted of a crime after returning from the frontline is 4,000 higher than previously thought, it was claimed yesterday.
Elfyn Llwyd told fellow MPs that an estimated 4,000 ex-servicemen were serving community punishments for drug dealing, robbery and sexual offences.
This is in addition to the estimated 8,500 prisoners - one in 10 of the jail population in England and Wales - who probation officers say are in jail after serving the country in Iraq or Afghanistan.
It also emerged that the Ministry of Defence had for the first time commissioned an internal study to try to understand the scale of the problem.
Mr Llwyd said it was a "massive problem": "At a time when serving soldiers have to make do with inferior kit, failure to act on this problem - and to do so positively and urgently - will be seen as further evidence that this Government has breached the covenant with the armed services in the most obvious and serious way.
"With proper support and counselling I believe that several thousands currently in custody would not be there."
Related link...
Data laws hamper MoD prison study
Data protection rules are preventing the number of military veterans in prison from being discovered, BBC News has learned.
A mixture of law, politics, autobiography and humour. Once described as "The Devilish Advocate" (Guardian), I do have the ability to provoke a response. Sometimes it comes from someone who uses a thought process, and sometimes from jerks usually associated with the knee.
1 comment:
jailhouselawyer,
Data protection laws did not safeguard the security of MoD data discs. Why did it disappear ??
Why is so much highly confidential data not being properly safeguarded in this day and age ??
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