Is Prison too easy going?

After watching a programme about prisoners on life sentences, I was shocked and disgusted to see that the prison system has lost its purpose completely. Murderers and criminals who have committed unthinkable crimes are being treated to a life of luxury, 100% further away from the punishment they deserve. Prison is now more of a holiday home, that some prisoners prefer to the outside world.

Britain is still in the middle of a recession which is seeing hard-working people struggling to afford even the basics. Unemployment figures have risen to 2.65 million, which includes qualified students and university leavers. Finding a job has never been harder.

In my opinion, receiving a life sentence means you should not be allowed any luxuries. This means no nice food, no television and especially no X-box’s or CD players. Our government is so corrupt that people that have an education and thrive to forge a career to buy nice things are becoming worse off than highly dangerous, psychopathic criminals. I think they need to bring back the proper punishment that criminals deserve for their actions. Shared metal cells instead of individual ‘little apartment’ rooms with curtains and comfy beds. To only be allowed to sit and think about the crime they committed instead of playing violent games on consoles. There are starving homeless people living on the streets that have not done anything to get where they are, apart from being dealt a bad hand in life. These aren’t criminals, yet rapists, murderers and child-abusers are given a better life.

How is this fair?

I was shocked that in the programme, a young man who had committed murder openly announced that he didn’t want to leave prison because he had a great life. Television, comfy room, pet and a CD player. He stated that he didn’t want to go ‘out there’ as there were no jobs and he wouldn’t have near as much as he did inside.

Is is justifiable to let prisoners complete courses those on the outside have to pay for?

Another harrowing fact was that prisoners are also allowed to complete educational courses whilst inside so they can gain qualifications. Courses like these, which people are paying thousands of pounds to complete and racking up huge amounts of debts to secure themselves a good career and life, criminals are getting for free. Why should they even have this advantage? Does this mean that when they do come out of Prison, they can walk into a job as they do indeed have this qualification?

Our government and society needs to take a serious look into the prison system, as this is a problem that is sickening.