THE public in Britain, as in most developed countries, has been schooled over decades to regard imprisonment as a fitting and effective method of dealing with wrongdoers. Such a notion gives belief a bad name, since it persists despite statistical, anecdotal, and widely accepted evidence that prisons are a “costly failure”. The phrase comes from an article in these pages almost a year ago (Comment, 15 September 2023), in which the Revd Dr David Kirk Beedon, an author and researcher in penal pastoral practice, proposed that the problem of incarceration should be looked at from three angles: pragmatically, morally, and theologically. Pragmatically, Dr Beedon writes, “Almost half of those who are released from prison . . . reoffend within a year.” The annual cost of imprisoning someone is about £45,000. By midweek, 152 of the 157 people sentenced for their part in the violent disorder at the start of this month had been committed to prison (139 of them) or a young-offender institution (13). Assuming that each serves half of the average two-year sentence being meted out, that is approaching £7 million to add to the cost of policing the streets and repairing the damage caused. At least twice as many are still to be processed.

Perhaps reoffending is less likely with this particular intake, taking account of the claims made in court on behalf of the defendants. Among those attempting to storm the hotel that houses asylum-seekers in Rotherham were Lee Crisp, 42, who said that he accidentally got caught up in the riot when taking his mother for Sunday lunch; Craig Timbrell, 38, who had been in the city centre with friends and “couldn’t really explain” why he threw concrete blocks, bricks, and bottles at the police; and Liam Gray, 20, whose family reported that “there isn’t a racist bone in his body.” The Government’s priorities were, none the less, clear. First, deterrent: Stephen Parkinson, Director of Public Prosecutions, said: “I say that a swift and unambiguous response was the only way to bring widespread disorder under control.” Second, punishment: there should be consequences for threatening asylum-seekers or injuring police offers. Third, security: it has been necessary to protect the vulnerable by taking thugs off the streets.

But finally must come reformation, and an overcrowded and understaffed prison is unlikely to be a place where more enlightened opinions and acceptable conduct can be nurtured. The moral and theological demands for change come with the question: how best can one convert people from hateful opinions and violent behaviour? Away from the febrile August atmosphere, the Government must find a way to make this last question the first to be asked, so that the criminal justice system works backwards from the most successful outcome. Over time, the UK public has been weaned off transportation and execution as solutions to crime. Can it be persuaded to fall out of love with prison?