Steep rise in number of Isle of Man prisoners

The facility in Jurby was opened in 2008

Early release for some inmates is being considered in a bid to deal with a "significant increase" in the Isle of Man prison population in the last year, the home affairs minister has said.

While the Jurby prison's population had been about 90 for "some time" beforehand, the number of inmates had jumped by more than 40% to 128 since April 2023, Jane Poole-Wilson said.

She said the increase was largely down to the work of Manx police in tackling the "importation and distribution of drugs".

"Immediate actions" that would ease the numbers, including a review of the configuration of the prison, the use of short-term temporary accommodation within the prison for lower risk prisoners or early release for certain offenders, were now being considered, she said.

Ms Poole-Wilson said, although both the prison governor and the department had powers to release prisoners early, offenders jailed for offences of violence and sexual violence were not eligible for early release.

She told politicians thorough risk and behavioural assessments were carried out before a prisoner could be released early.

'Severe strain'

While the prison has an operational capacity of 141 cells, in "practical terms" the figure is lower due to configuration and management of the prison, the minister told Tynwald members.

Jason Moorhouse MHK said, with 13 places at the prison remaining, the next four months could be a "pressure period" and asked whether the actions were "doable in such a short period of time".

Juan Watterson SHK questioned whether prisoners who were UK residents could be repatriated.

Ms Poole-Wilson said while there were recruitment drives to maintain staffing availability at the Manx facility, the department faced competition from other sectors seeking to recruit people with a similar skillset.

The "severe strain" on facilities in the UK meant that the capacity may not be there to transfer inmates, she added.