Reid unveils plans for new prisons

Plans for a new 700-bed jail alongside maximum security Belmarsh prison were announced by the Home Secretary today.

John Reid also revealed that planning permission had been secured for a new 600-place prison near Ashworth high security mental hospital in Merseyside.

The two projects together are likely to cost more than £160 million to build, although the Home Office refused to disclose official costings ahead of a bidding process for construction contracts.

A site has been purchased by the Home Office next to Belmarsh - one of the most secure prisons in the country which features a special "jail within a jail" housing many radical Muslim terrorist prisoners, among others.

The planned new jail is expected to be a lower risk Category C jail, however.

The Merseyside site, at Maghull, is in addition to a 350-place "temporary" jail on the same site, which was announced last month.

The Home Secretary is expected to say: "We are working flat out to deliver additional capacity within the prison system. In July last year I announced plans for an extra 8,000 places to be delivered by 2012. That process starts now.

"We already own two potential sites for new prisons and I can announce today that one of them is here at Maghull, where we already have planning permission to provide up to 600 new places by 2010. A second is next door to Belmarsh prison in South East London, where we are still in discussion with the planning authorities.

"In total, our building programme now amounts to around 10,000 new places over the next five years.

"In 2007 alone, I am planning to deliver around 2500 new places, including around 1500 by July with new places at 13 different prisons."

Mr Reid will say during a visit to Maghull later today that another 30 sites are being considered for new jails across the country.

The building programme comes as the prison population is at crisis point.

There are nearly 80,000 inmates in England and Wales, with some jails at bursting point and some prisoners being housed in police stations instead.

Mr Reid will also inspect work on the new temporary facility at Maghull, which will be called HMP Kennet.

Hospital wards and office buildings are being refurbished to house adult male offenders, and a secure perimeter fence will be erected.

The Home Secretary has pledged to build 8,000 extra prison places by 2012.

New prisons cost about £100,000 to £125,000 per place to build, meaning the 8,000 places will come with a £1 billion price tag.