Latest editorial
JUSTICE Secretary Liz Truss and prison service head Michael Spurr should be sacked for incompetence following the latest damning government statistics on understaffing, the Prison Officers Association said yesterday.
Front-line prison officer numbers fell by more than 300 last year, official figures show, triggering fresh scrutiny of staffing levels as jails tackle a safety crisis.
Latest statistics from the National Offender Management Service (Noms) reveal a loss of 366 staff, many of them experienced officers, last year and 133 over the last quarter.
Our members face serious violence, crumbling workplaces and exposure to dangerous drugs — it is outrageous we still cannot legally use our industrial muscle to fight back and defend ourselves, writes STEVE GILLAN
Working in a high-risk sector, prison officers’ calls for proper PPE must be heeded – and the POA will be fighting to ensure effective protection at work is delivered, writes MARK FAIRHURST
