Prisoner numbers at record high

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The number of prison inmates in England and Wales has reached a record 82,501.

The figure is up from the previous all-time high of 82,312, which was set last week.

A Prison Service spokesman commented: "The prison population remains of concern, but we have brought forward measures to address this.

"Since the beginning of March we have increased total capacity by over 1,000 places through the prison building programme."

In February, Justice Secretary Jack Straw called on magistrates courts to use more community punishments.

Liberal Democrat legal spokesman David Howarth said: "The sheer weight of prisoner numbers has pushed the system to the brink of collapse.

"Prison officers are making it painfully clear that they are losing control of prisons.

"The prison population has hit a record high and we are inches away from hitting absolute capacity.

"It is time for an urgent rethink of our penal system before it descends further into chaos."

The prison population has risen dramatically since Christmas 2007, outstripping the number of new places becoming available.

Prisoner numbers have gone up by nearly 600 in three weeks - equal to the population of an medium-sized jail.

The government has promised to provide 2,500 extra places in 2008.