LONDON - More than 300 prisoners have committed suicide in English and Welsh prisons over the past five years as the number of inmates soared, a penal reform group said yesterday. "Prison does not work it kills", the Howard League said in a report which showed 301 inmates killed themselves from 1990-1995.
The league accused the Home Secretary, Mr Michael Howard, of "encouraging the profligate use of penal custody resulting in youngsters and vulnerable people dying."