TWISTED criminals like child-killer Ian Huntley would be sent to jails in El Salvador to serve their sentences under a Reform UK government.
Party leader Nigel Farage is today set to unveil plans to rent prison space overseas — including in Central America — to cage Britain’s most depraved murderers and paedophiles.
PANigel Farage is set to unveil plans to rent prison space overseas[/caption]
APHis plans include caging Britain’s most depraved murderers and paedophiles in Central America[/caption]
PA:Press AssociationSick monster Soham double child killer Ian Huntley[/caption]
The proposed scheme would see more than 10,000 serious offenders locked up in “partner” nations — with a Reform source yesterday confirming: “We would consider multiple partners including El Salvador.”
And Mr Farage told The Sun: “For too long, Labour and the Tories have sent the message that crime in Britain carries little to no consequence. Reform will change that.
“If you’re a criminal, we are putting you on notice. In 2029 you have a choice to make: be a law-abiding citizen or face serious justice.”
In Westminster, Mr Farage will outline proposals to lease overseas cells, providing a cost-effective solution at a time when our jails are nearing breaking point.
The plan would make use of so-called dynamic prisons — which focus on adapting traditional options to become more flexible in their location and management.
According to Ministry of Justice data, the average annual cost of housing a prisoner in England and Wales was £51,724 as of April 2024.
Last month, the prison population rose to a staggering 87,334 — just 2,239 short of full capacity.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood faced criticism earlier this month over recommendations that could allow thugs, thieves, and drug-dealers to avoid crown court.
Offenders may dodge a criminal record and instead be sentenced to do unpaid work or get rehabilitation, it is proposed.
Sentences could also be slashed by 40 per cent — up from a third now — for early guilty pleas.
That’s in addition to thousands of early prisoner releases both last year and this to try to stop a meltdown in the prison system.
Reform MP Sarah Pochin, a former magistrate, told The Sun yesterday: “The cost to the British taxpayer of prison places is currently estimated at over £50,000 per year and rising.
“By sending our most serious offenders to overseas jails, we greatly reduce this cost and at the same time they experience a tougher prison environment and lose privileges such as family visits which quite frankly they don’t deserve.”
Supporters say the move would curb the ability of sick monsters — including Soham double child-killer Huntley — to torment the families of their victims from behind bars.
Last week, The Sun revealed Huntley had sparked outrage by donning a Manchester United-style No10 shirt — a chilling and offensive reference to ones worn by ten-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman on the day he murdered them in 2002.
Now 51, Huntley is serving a life sentence at HMP Frankland, Co Durham, where a source said: “He’s been seen strutting about in the shirt as if it’s funny. It is vile.”
We told yesterday how jail bosses had now confiscated the shirt.
Sending lags abroad to complete their time behind bars is catching on in Scandinavia.
Denmark has signed a ten-year deal with Kosovo to lease 300 cells in a refurbished prison near the city of Gjilan.
The agreement is worth around £13million per year, with an extra £4.3million in one-off refurbishment costs, totalling approximately £173million over the decade.
The initiative is aimed at easing overcrowding in Danish jails, which have operated at capacity for years.
Under the plan, only foreign nationals set to be deported post-sentence will be relocated to Kosovo.
For too long, Labour and the Tories have sent the message that crime in Britain carries little to no consequence. Reform will change that
Nigel Farage
But Reform insists that its blueprint will include Britain’s most dangerous criminals.
Deport offenders
The party has already vowed to deport all international offenders.
Denmark says its programme is both economical and effective, helping to address staff shortages and easing the strain on local prisons.
Supporters say it also sends a firm message to foreign offenders: commit a crime here, and you won’t be in for an easy ride.
Elsewhere in Europe, Belgium is eyeing a similar deal with Kosovo, while the Netherlands plans to send up to 500 foreign inmates to Estonia from next year.
Sweden is studying the legal feasibility of exporting both Swedish and foreign prisoners, and Austria has also expressed interest in following Denmark’s lead.
If you’re a criminal, we are putting you on notice. In 2029 you have a choice to make: be a law-abiding citizen or face serious justice
Nigel Farage
And in March, President Donald Trump deported more than 200 Venezuelans held in the US to a mega-prison in El Salvador.
But Labour has blasted Mr Farage’s overseas prison places plan as “pie in the sky”.
A Government source told The Sun: “This is more fantasy thinking from Farage, who has once again dreamed up a policy that just doesn’t add up.
“While he peddles pie in the sky schemes, this Government is building prisons right here in Britain with 2,400 new cells opened as part of the biggest jail expansion in over a century.”
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