Legal News

Justice Secretary Michael Gove has proposed a new scheme under which old Victorian prisons would be “designed out” – with existing prisons and the land they are situated on being sold to developers for new housing.

Mr Gove said that the money used from the sale of prisons for housing would be used to help rehabilitate offenders – with new prisons designed to eradicate “dark corners”, where “bullying, drug-dealing and violence” take place.

Mr Gove’s proposals were announced at a speech he made in Vauxhall, south London. If the scheme goes ahead, some of London’s oldest prisons could be sold of for new housing developments.

The Justice Secretary has made it clear he wishes to raise educational standards among prisoners and equip them for the world of work while they are serving their sentences in jail.

He has suggested they could earn early release through academic achievement, rather than the current system of being automatically released midway through a sentence on licence.

Mr Gove said:

”We have to consider closing down the ageing and ineffective Victorian prisons in our major cities, reducing the crowding and ending the inefficiencies which blight the lives of everyone in them – and building new prisons which embody higher standards in every way they operate.

“The money which could be raised from selling off inner city sites for development would be significant.”

Duncan Lewis Housing Solicitors

Duncan Lewis housing solicitors can advise social housing tenants and rental tenants in the private sector on a wide range of housing matters, including:

• Council’s obligation to re-house (Section 193)
• Disrepair
• Housing Benefit
• Landlord & Tenant disputes
• Local Authority housing
• Notice to quit
• Right-to-Buy
• Tenancy agreements
• Unlawful eviction.

There are Duncan Lewis offices nationwide – including more than 20 offices across London – and Duncan Lewis is a leading provider of Legal Aid services.

Duncan Lewis also offers competitively-priced conveyancing services to homebuyers, including guiding first-time buyers through the conveyancing process.

For expert legal advice on all housing and property matters, call Duncan Lewis Housing Solicitors on 020 7923 4020.