Former Lord Chief Justice calls for end to longer prison sentences amid overcrowding

Former Lord Chief Justice calls for end to longer prison sentences amid overcrowding Source: Sky News

Transcript

00:00Our position is very clear. We have increased the prison population and it is promised to

00:07increase by a very substantial proportion over the next few years and we need to stand

00:12back and work out are we using our resources properly. We think there is an urgent need

00:20for a review of what has happened over the last 20 years to get everything back to a

00:26proper sense of proportion. Well yes you talk about a proper sense of proportion but to

00:33what extent have sentences got longer and why has it happened? I think there are two

00:38reasons for it. First of all we have been changing sentencing legislation on and off

00:46over the last 15 to 20 years without really looking at the effect as a whole. For example

00:54the sentences for murder were significantly increased, people have been required to spend

01:00longer of the sentence in prison and all of these have a cumulative or other effect and

01:07you need to stand back and ask yourselves have we got the resources balanced correctly?

01:15Has the increase in sentencing reduced crime? Has it had the right effect? And secondly

01:22if you have prisons that are overcrowded they cannot be used and cannot function as

01:29intended namely to provide places of rehabilitation and so we have a system that isn't as a result

01:37of what has happened not working properly.