The cutting-edge technology will be installed first at 16
local jails with high volumes of remand prisoners –
posing the greatest risk of smuggling. The £28 million
that will pay for X-ray scanners across the estate is
being funded from the government’s bold £100 million
package to boost security.
The investment will fund new measures to tackle drugs and
violence in prisons, including X-ray baggage scanners and
metal-detection equipment, phone-blocking technology and
a new digital
forensics facility.
Prisons and Probation Minister, said:
New technology is a vital part of our efforts to stop
those determined to wreak havoc in our jails. These
scanners will help to stem the flow of contraband into
jails and allow officers to focus on rehabilitation.
We’re investing £2.75 billion to transform our prisons,
creating 10,000 additional modern places, and stepping
up security to cut crime and better protect the public.
HMP Leeds Governor Steve Robson, which already has an
X-ray scanner, said:
The scanner has been a real game changer. In the year
it has been in operation, it has found over 300 items
of contraband, with prisoners finding drugs harder to
come by at Leeds.
The first wave of jails has been prioritised after
careful consideration and this will boost security where
remand prisoners are received from courts. The use of
X-ray body scanners at 10 other challenging prisons – as
part of the ’10 Prisons Project’ - was successful in
detecting contraband and contributed to a significant
reduction in violence and drug use.
The installation at the 16 prisons will begin in Spring
2020, with all scanners expected to be in place by the
Summer. The technology is set to be introduced in other
prisons across the estate later this year.
The images produced by the scanner provide a level of
detail inside the body that has not been seen before in
the Prison Service.
The equipment is being funded by the government’s £2.75
billion commitment to transform the prison estate. This
includes:
- £100 million to bolster prison security, clamping
down on the weapons, drugs and mobile phones that fuel
violence, self-harm and crime behind bars
- £2.5 billion to provide 10,000 additional prison
places and create modern, efficient jails that
rehabilitate offenders, reduce reoffending and keep the
public safe
- £156 million to tackle the most pressing maintenance
issues to create safe and decent conditions for offender
rehabilitation.
Notes to editors
- The prisons receiving scanners are HMP Exeter,
Durham, Preston, Liverpool, Birmingham, Hewell, Lincoln,
Bedford, Norwich, Chelmsford, Winchester, Elmley,
Pentonville, Wandsworth, Bristol and Cardiff.
- Adani Limited has been awarded a multi-year contract
for the supply, installation and support of the X-ray
body scanners.
