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"Widespread" drug problem in British prisons

09/06/2008

A leading thinktank has claimed that drugs are a widespread problem in British prisons.

A report by the Centre for Policy Studies published today claims that the problem is undermining attempts to clean up prisoners with pre-existing drug addictions and greatly increases the chances of recidivism and corrupting staff.

The thinktank claims that the government appears more content on managing the problem than eradicating it.

As a result, drug treatment in prisons is more based on prescribing substitute drugs such as methadone, rather than attempting to stop addictions outright.

The report's author Huseyin Djemil, a former drug strategy coordinator in London prisons, says the situation is the same with the supply of drugs in prison and claims the government's reactive approach is "inadequate".

Today's report also criticises mandatory drug tests, claiming they are "unreliable and potentially dangerous".

Mr Djemil claims that tests in fact encourage the use of class A drugs over cannabis as traces of the drugs don't stay in the body for as long.

The report claims the problems lies in the fact that "no one in authority understands the prison drugs market".

It claims that it is unknown how widespread drugs are used in prisons and that prisons rarely communicate with each other regarding how to eradicate the problem.

In the report, Mr Djemil calls for prisons to work with the law enforcement community to develop intelligence systems inside prisons which mirror those outside.