CJM CISMJIWEMTEIS TURNING THE PRISON SCREW! misreads history. The backlash against of Woolf's central proposals, particu- Back to basics Woolf started before he became Home larly his view that prison contracts and Michael Howard's law and order pack- Secretary. For example, on the day that notions of individual responsibility can age announced at the Conservative Party Woolf reported, the then Home Secre- be introduced into institutions without conference in October and his subse- tary, Kenneth Baker, was quite explicit dealing with the operation of power in quent 'back to basics' pronouncements about the message that prisoners and those institutions, especially the power which were supported by the Prime Min- those in the wider society should receive of prison officers. ister, placed the prison system at the about the future. He pointed to the re- Definitions of responsibility and irre- centre of the Government's strategy for forms which had been introduced since sponsibility will still very much remain dealing with crime and disorder. Much the disturbances in April 1990. These in their highly discretionary, largely non- of the political furore which followed included: increasing the stock of riot accountable hands. Woolf also failed to these announcements centred on the control equipment, opening twelve new deal with the particular problems of Home Secretary's (mis)interpretation of prisons by 1993, training more staff in women prisoners, the central question of a range of research studies and his at- new and improved techniques of riot democratic accountability, the issue of tempt to marginalise what the majority control and creating a new offence of sentencing policy and the philosophical of commentators, academic and other- prison mutiny which would carry amaxi- basis of judicial thinking. In addition, wise, wrongly regard as the best policy mum sentence of ten years. It was only despite claims that prisoners' accounts document on the way forward, namely after listing these changes that Baker counted, in practice the report either ig- Lord Justice Woolf's report into turned to the issues which many prison- nored orexcused some serious allegations Strangeways and other prison distur- ers had identified in the genesis of the that prisoners made. Paragraph 8.188 bances. disturbances: overcrowding, slopping provides a good example of this point. out, the lack of rehabilitative programmes Those prisoners involved in the The apparent marginal! sation of the and the fracturing of family ties. His report, a point also made by Woolf and Pucklechurch demonstration were told emphasis on smothering Woolf within a that their arms and legs would be broken. other senior judges, has only added to the blanket of coercive measures was re- view that the Home Secretary is deter- For Woolf, such appalling behaviour had peated in September 1991 at the annual to be considered against 'the long hours mined to push ahead with his now conference of the Boards of Visitors and well-publicised goal that gaols should that management-and staff had been on at the Conservative Party conference one duty... Each member of staff must have become more 'austere' places. Resur- month later where he warned that prison- recting memories of the grim and prudent been extremely tired and close to ex- ers would quickly learn that rioting was haustion' (Woolf Report 199!). nineteenth century 'judges of normality' not a 'cost-free option'. Baker therefore Howard supports the reintroduction of a created the necessary space for Howard's In essence, Woolf has attempted to prison machine driven forward by the emphasis on punishment and control, a introduce what he regarded as a series of twin pistons of punishment and deter- position which was facilitated further by apolitical reforms into a highly politi- rence. The logical conclusion to be drawn Kenneth Clarke's rejection of the unit- cised debate. This has meant that while is that if the Home Secretary can be made fine system before Howard came to government ministers and civil servants to alter his views (hence the pre-Christ- office. It should also be noted that can pay lip service to the impartiality and mas debates about divisions with his Howard's sentiments and policy orien- depth of the recommendations, in prac- officials) then the policy will change tation are not far removed from Leon tice they have been free to choose which with a resumption of the reforms which Brittan's speech to the 1983 Conserva- policies to implement, which to ignore had materialised in the post-Woolf, pre- tive Party conference which announced and which to bend to suit their own Howard days of consent. the massive prison building programme, purposes. For example, at the public There are three major problems with minimum set sentences for particular inquiry held in November in Liverpool this line of argument. First, it individual- crimes and introduced more austere pa- which examined proposals to build a ises the complex problems facing the role regulations for long-term prisoners. new prison in Fazakerley, Home Office prison and criminal justice systems in FouryearsearlierWiiliamWhiteiawhad officials maintained that in the spirit of this country. While individual Home announced the resurrection of yet an- Woolf the new prison would be a 'com- Secretaries may be important at particu- other austere regime, the short, sharp munity prison' thus allowing prisoners lar moments, to concentrate exclusively shock of the detention centres. It is nec- closer contact with family and friends. on the strengths and weaknesses of the essary therefore to see Howard's actions At the same time they also maintained office holder restricts discussion and as part of a process of continuity rather that not only will existing prisons remain debate on the range of structural issues than as an aberration from what has been open but further prisons may also be confronting both systems. It reduces these a benevolent norm. built in the north west. The prison estate issues toaquestion of personality differ- therefore will continue to expand behind ences while allowing broader questions the liberal rhetoric of 'community pris- The third problem with focusing on ons'. around the politics and policies of pun- the present Home Secretary is that the ishment to be ignored. Prisons are austere problems associated with the Woolf re- References places, both physically and psychologi- port are never discussed. Instead Woolf's Sim J (1993) "Reforming the Penal cally, with or without Howard's analysis has been allowed to set the po- Wasteland?: A Critical Review of the interventions. Concentrating on an addi- litical and sociological agenda for Woolf Report' in E Player and M Jenkins tional turn of the prison screw distracts discussion. Space does not allow for a eds Prisons After W<x>//Routledge. attention away from the nature of the complete critique of Woolf's proposals, Woolf Lord Justice and Tumim Stephen screw itself. I have done this elsewhere (Sim 1993). It (1991) Prison Disturbances April 1990 The second problem with 'blaming' is important to note however, that there CM 1456 HMSO Michael Howard is that this position are significant problems with a number Joe Sim is Professor of Criminology a! Liverpool John Moores University. 12.