Letter: Here are the causes of crime

Monday 05 May 1997 23:02 BST

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Sir: Paul Cavadino laments (letter, 2 May) the overcrowding in Britain's jails, which he attributes to "an increasingly crude penal policy". Perhaps that is indeed the cause. But could he also, from his presumably informed position as chairman of the Penal Affairs Consortium, say to what extent, if any, the problem might be due to more people committing crimes for which the penalty is imprisonment?

MICHAEL PHILLIPS

Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire

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Letter: Here are the causes of crime

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