Fury as jail with 700 spaces remains shut for weeks while 1,750 convicts released

HMP Dartmoor was forced to temporarily adjacent (Image: Getty)

A UK situation remains bare aft being forced to temporarily adjacent successful July - arsenic hundreds of prisoners are released aboriginal nether Keir Starmer's program to escaped up cells.

More than 170 inmates astatine the situation - which has a capableness of astir 700 - were relocated to different prisons successful the southwest aft radon was discovered successful the cells successful July.

The situation has faced issues with the colourless, odourless, radioactive gas, for astir a twelvemonth now.

At the extremity of 2023, precocious levels of the state led to much than 400 inmates being removed from the jailhouse - with prisoners starting to instrumentality successful July earlier the latest incident.

The prison, which was built during the Napoleanic Wars successful the aboriginal 19th century, was primitively acceptable to adjacent past twelvemonth - nevertheless that determination was suspended successful 2019 owed to rising captive numbers.

Hundreds person prisoners person been relocated from the situation (Image: Getty)

The situation remains closed arsenic the Labour authorities releases prisoners to easiness overcrowding, a determination that has caused contention amongst absorption parties.

Questions person been raised astir wherefore the radon contented was not resolved erstwhile it was archetypal detected.

Gas specializer David Rees, brag of information steadfast Air Quality Testing, told the Sun connected Sunday: "These systems tin beryllium fitted successful 2 oregon 3 days. I did a situation successful Bridgend wherever they moved the inmates from 1 conception to the other. We were successful and retired successful a day."

He added determination was usually a play of investigating after, and that the authorities whitethorn beryllium keen not to beryllium criticised for taking risks with people's safety.

James Cleverly, shadiness Home Secretary, claimed the Conservative authorities had worked to reopen the cells astatine HMP Dartmoor erstwhile they became alert of the radon issue.

Also speaking to the Sun connected Sunday, Mr Cleverly demanded Labour get the situation backmost "online".

Opened successful the 19th century, and seen present successful 1932, HMP Dartmoor was meant to unopen past twelvemonth (Image: Getty)

Labour's argumentation - which it says is simply a effect of situation overcrowding it inherited from the Conservative Party - sees the proportionality of sentences which immoderate inmates indispensable service down bars temporarily chopped from 50 percent to 40 percent amid Government warnings jails were being pushed to the “point of collapse”.

Around 1,750 prisoners were freed aboriginal connected Tuesday from jails crossed England and Wales.

Criminals serving situation sentences of little than 4 years for convulsive offences, including manslaughter, are among those eligible to beryllium freed nether the scheme.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "After adjacent monitoring of the concern astatine HMP Dartmoor, the situation has been temporarily closed and we are exploring however it tin beryllium reopened.”