Sentencing policy 'means jails will be full in new year'

Prison governors have warned that prisons in England and Wales will be full by the new year unless the Government intervenes.

Mike Newell, the president of the Prison Governors' Association, blamed increased sentencing powers for magistrates and fast-track convictions for the record number of inmates.

The prison population in England and Wales has risen to 72,379 at the end of last week from 41,500 in 1994 . Police cells are being used to house 350 prisoners daily to cope with overcrowding.

At the PGA's annual conference near Wotton-under-Edge in Gloucestershire, Mr Newell said: "The main issue is the overcrowding in prisons and the sentencing policy which is affecting the numbers in our prisons.

"The fact is that we have not got enough room and we have run out of options. We can always squeeze one or two here or there but short of building new prisons, which we cannot do overnight, we predict that we will be out of places by January."

Mr Newell said: "We need to challenge the Home Office to stop the prison service from collapsing. We are into a very bad crisis and we have the support of the Director General and our board and we now need some intervention from ministers."

Mr Newell suggested several measures were open to the Home Secretary, such as curbing sentencing powers and reducing the remand population through electronic tagging and regular reporting to police.

Prisons minister Hilary Benn MP is expected to tell the conference today that the Government is doing all it can to reduce the prison population by providing "robust alternatives to custodial sentences".

He will say: "The Home Secretary, the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice have sent a loud and clear message that custody must be reserved for serious, violent and persistent offenders."