Mass incarceration is a luxury we can no longer afford

In 6 December 2010, Mary Ridell's essay, 'Ken Clarke's justice revolution might not succeed – but it's worth a go', appeared in The Daily Telegraph.

This on the back of Clarke's determination that criminals, on his watch, would spend less time in prison. Riddell opined thus:

"Mass incarceration is a luxury that Britain can no longer afford."

And we can afford the mass criminality that will ensue by not locking them up? Maybe leafy surburbians, gated community types and ivory tower dwellers like you can afford to sick the bad guys on to the rest of us, Mary, but, personally, I would much rather save money by having their TVs and play stations taken from them.

The jailbird would also be fed, for the most part, on sauce sandwiches and flogging would be reintroduced. Given that this punishment would replace a certain amount of the sentence, (in some cases all of it)less jail space wouldbe needed. Also, of course,such punishment wouldprovide the long suffering majority with a jolly good laugh at the expense of the misery makers. A small fee could be charged of those who wished to witness such entertainment and the exchequer's wealth would be enhanced righteously as a result.

Also, if the anti-societal must be freed early, let them be housed, for a probationary period, in the homes of the certfiable do-gooder, the human rights lawyer and activist, the parsimonious politician and, of course,the tender-hearted media darling. I suspect you'd be writing a different kind of article ifsuch a common sense scheme was introduced, Mary.

A few of the much misunderstood felons who may be popping in for a bit of tea and sympathy can be seen in Rogues' Gallery.