[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by JoshBB

What is he protesting?

1990...

Bill Gould, aged 32, said he had been in and out of nearly every jail in the country, but Strangeways was one of the worst. ‘The prison should have been burned down years ago. It is a barbaric regime ruled by brutality and drug abuse.’ He shouted at the protesters to hold out. ‘You’ll be battered and then banged for a long time when you come down. They did it to me when I was involved in a riot situation.’

He said he had been inside the Manchester jail five times and was not condemning all prison staff, only those who used drugs as a ‘liquid cosh because it was the only way for them to keep control.’

David Waddington, the Home Secretary, has agreed to meet leaders of the Prison Officers’ Association on Wednesday to hear their complaints about understaffing. '

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2...c-archive-1990


Now...
The M.E.N. can reveal the catalogue of violence that has erupted in Strangeways over the last month as the jail reaches ‘boiling point’.

The prison has been simmering for several months due to an alleged staffing crisis and prisoners spending up to 23 hours locked up resulting in a spate of incidents.

In the last five weeks six staff and 23 prisoners have been assaulted and in the same period there have been 19 incidents of self harm.

A spokesman for the Prison Officers Association said the situation had reached ‘boiling point’.
The POA spokesman added: “Nationally the level of serious violence across the prison estate has risen dramatically. Serious assaults on staff are up 48 per cent in the last year according to the latest data from NOMS.

Within the High Security Estate, Manchester is a cause for most concern as the pressure to deliver more with less staff hits home.

“The year on year budget cuts and staff shortfalls across the prison estate are the main underlying cause to the increase in violence, low staff morale and prisoner unrest.

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co....dents-10051582