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Prisoner freed under early release scheme 'will be sleeping on a park bench tonight' and 'wishes he was still locked up'
10 September 2024, 12:15
Newly-released prisoner says he'll be sleeping on a bench now
A prisoner freed under an early release scheme has said he will be sleeping on a park bench on his first night out from behind bars.
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Jackie Creighton, 54, was released from Wandsworth prison on Tuesday as part of a government scheme to free up space in desperately overcrowded jails.
Some 1,700 prisoners in England and Wales are being let out early, on top of the 1,000 prisoners normally released each week.
But Mr Creighton told LBC that he wished he could stay behind bars for the security it provides.
He said: "I'm not just saying that - I really would have rather just stayed in there, not because I like it - because I know I'm going be on a bench tonight, after a nice warm cell, a nice padmate [roommate], television, kettle and three square meals a day."
Speaking immediately as he came out of prison, Mr Creighton said that he had been serving time for shoplifting and common assault.
He described his offences as "getting drunk and acting like a lout", adding that "no doubt" he would start drinking again now he was out.
Mr Creighton said that he had been in and out of prison "too many times" for "petty" offences, joking that he looked more like a grandfather than a father to many of his fellow inmates.
He said that he worried that despite being released early, he would soon be back behind bars again.
Mr Creighton said the early release scheme felt rushed and that he was worried that the probation service would not have had time to make any arrangements for him.
Prison population hits record high in week before early release scheme starts
"I'd rather have just sat there," he said. "It would maybe give probation, whoever, more time to sort stuff out. So I'm not really holding it against probation".
Others were more positive about being released early, and were greeted by friends who sprayed them with champagne outside the prison.
Referencing the others, Mr Creighton said: "I mean, they're glad, obviously, because there is too many inmates in there, the officers are really struggling."
HMP Wandsworth is notoriously overcrowded, dirty and rat-infested, with a report last month calling the prison unsafe and "inhumane".
The highly controversial move is the largest release of prisoners in a decade, with some prisons in rural areas reportedly preparing to lay on coaches to transport freed criminals.
Downing Street said the policy had to be brought in to avoid "unchecked criminality" where the police and courts are unable to lock anyone up because there were no places available.
Prisoner reacts to being released under Labour scheme
Chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor said that the government "had no choice but to do something" about overcrowding because "the bath was in danger of overflowing, and they either had to turn the taps off or they had to let some water out".
But he also warned some of those released would be homeless which could increase their chances of reoffending.
Mr Taylor said: "It's inevitable that some of these prisoners will get recalled to custody and it's inevitable that some of them will go out homeless."
Mr Taylor's comments came as his annual report was released, which said the number of prisoners is projected to grow by about 27,000 by 2028, meaning it is unlikely to be possible to build enough new accommodation.
The prison population reached a new record high of 88,521 people on Friday and has risen by more than 1,000 people over the past four weeks.
The report also detailed the "desperate" crisis in violence and drug use behind bars, as well as the lack of available rehabilitation that would keep people from reoffending.
