Jail overcrowding report adds to Reid's woes

LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters) Overcrowding in jails has hampered attempts to rehabilitate inmates, the head of the prisons watchdog is expected to warn today in a report that will add to pressure on Home Secretary John Reid.

In her fifth annual report, Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers will say staff are struggling to cope with offenders who are addicted to drugs or mentally ill, newspapers said.

The number of women and foreign nationals in jails has added to the problem, she will say, according to the Independent.

The Home Secretary is under intense pressure after a series of rows at the Home Office, including a dispute with judges over sentencing.

Reid and the government's legal advisers reminded the courts this month of guidelines saying jail terms should only be given to serious, violent or repeat offenders, sparking an angry reaction from some judges.

Prime Minister Tony Blair admitted on Sunday that Britain's prisons were ''full to bursting'', but said the government was tackling the problem.

There are 80,000 people in jail, the highest per capita prison population in Western Europe. At least 8,000 extra spaces are planned.

Ministers have considered converting old army barracks, using prison ships or housing men in women's jails to ease overcrowding.

In her report, Owers is expected to highlight the impact of a change in the law two years ago to allow judges to give indefinite sentences, the Daily Telegraph said.

These mean prisoners stay longer in jail, blocking places for new inmates.

Last year, the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Phillips, the most senior judge in England and Wales, said prisons were too crowded to give proper rehabilitation.

They are often used as ''social dustbins'' for drug addicts and the mentally ill, he said.

The Conservatives' Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said Reid had failed to tackle the problems in his department and was ''papering over the cracks''.

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