031/2002 4 February 2002 BLUNKETT: RADICAL THINKING COULD TRANSFORM PRISONS Home Secretary David Blunkett today signalled the start of the most fundamental rethink of the prison system since the 19th Century. Speaking at the Prison Service Annual Conference in Nottingham, Mr Blunkett outlined radical ideas that could include a network of special open prisons and hostels that could combine custody with community punishment to create a "tough third option" for dealing with offenders. Mr Blunkett said: "We need to take a hard look at our prison system and start a fundamental debate about what will work in the 21st Century. I believe we can find imaginative solutions that offer a middle course between prison and probation. "I believe there could be scope for a new tough third option combining the strengths of custody and community punishment. An alternative regime that provides restriction, supervision and punishment but can allow offenders to keep jobs and maintain close links with their families. This could give sentencers this 'third option' when dealing with offenders who are not a danger to the community. "Let me be clear, this option would exclude anyone who would pose a risk to the public. Communities must be protected from dangerous, serious and sex offenders. I will introduce longer prison sentences for these offenders and more intensive supervision." The proposals could give sentencers a menu of options that could include ordering offenders - or even those on remand or bail - to live in special open prisons and hostels. The 24-hour surveillance that such a network could offer - and the advances made in tagging and voice recognition - could provide an alternative for those who do not need the highest levels of security. Mr Blunkett added: "Prison is an expensive way of denying people liberty. A new intermediate option could reduce costs dramatically, giving us more money to spend on crime reduction. "It could also ease pressure on the Prison Service, enabling it to focus on ensuring that longer term prisoners receive the regimes, training and programmes they need to sort out their offending behaviour. "I am looking for radical thinking. Our prison estate is inherited from the Victorians. We need prisons that are right for the 21st century. And that is why I am today starting a debate on how best to deal with the pressures our prison facilities are under." Mr Blunkett said: "I said eight months ago that John Halliday's review of the sentencing framework gave us a unique opportunity to examine what we should do to prevent, tackle and punish offending behaviour. "I stressed then that I wanted put the sense back into sentencing by seeking the views, not just of practitioners involved directly with the system, but also of the public. Now I'm doing what I promised. Getting tough with violent offenders while getting smart with the pressures on our outdated prison facilities. " Publishing the results of the consultation on sentencing reform, Mr Blunkett said that there had been almost unanimous support for the need for change to the present sentencing framework, accompanied by a strong message that changes should be properly resourced and able to stand the test of time. Ideas under consideration include: - intermittent custody, where offenders would spend part of the week in prison and part working or participating in community-based programmes; - a new intermediate sanction along the lines of special open prisons or hostels; and - "custody minus" - a custodial sentence which would be suspended while the offender completed a community-based programme, with swift recall to prison if the conditions were breached. He stressed: "I am interested in a new sentence of Custody Minus, where the sentencer could impose a custodial sentence but suspend it to allow the offender to complete a tough community punishment. One breach, and you're in." Mr Blunkett also announced that he is considering piloting forms of intermittent custody, where the offender spends weekends or weekdays in prison, allowing them to make reparations to the community, continue in employment and keep up family obligations. In addition, Mr Blunkett announced that the successful Home Detention Curfew scheme, under which eligible offenders spend the end of their sentence in the community on electronically-monitored curfew, will be extended by an extra month. Qualifying offenders will spend up to the last three months of their custodial sentence on the scheme rather than a maximum of two months. There is no change to the strict risk assessment process or the eligibility for HDC, which is limited to offenders sentenced to between three months and four years who are assessed as low risk and suitable for the programme. NOTES FOR EDITORS: 1. The Home Secretary announced the publication of the responses to Making Punishments Work: Report of The Sentencing Framework Review in a Statement to the House today. Copies of the responses report can be found on the Home Office website at: www.homeoffice.gov.uk 2. Led by John Halliday, formerly Director of Criminal Justice Policy at the Home Office, the evidence based review Making Punishments Work made a series of recommendations to Government. The Review began on 16 May 2000, reported to the Home Secretary on 1 May 2001 and was out for public consultation until 31 October 2001. 3. The Social Exclusion Unit is currently working with the Home Office and other Government departments on ways to cut rates of reoffending by ex-prisoners, in particular by boosting levels of employment and lowering homelessness. The Unit is expected to publish its report shortly. For further information, contact Ebba Brooks at the Social Exclusion Unit on 020 7276 2083. 4. Home Detention Curfew was introduced in January 1999. Since then around 46,000 offenders have participated in the scheme; 1750 were currently on HDC at end of last month. Since the start of the scheme less than 2% have re-offended while on curfew.