Jail ship needed for three years

Prison overcrowding means a floating jail may be needed for three years, the Prison Service said yesterday. It is seeking planning permission to bring one from the US to Portland harbour, Dorset.

Richard Tilt, the Director General of the Prison Service, said the prison population of England and Wales was approaching 60,000.

He also disclosed that the country's 900 most dangerous criminals are to be concentrated in 13 prisons which will have extra security. Eight that hold category A inmates will be down-graded. The move follows a recommendation in the report into the Parkhurst break-out which called for the most dangerous inmates to be kept in a smaller number of more secure units. Jason Bennetto