The Streatham attack, again, highlights the problem of what to do with those convicted of terror offences. Longer sentences are, obviously, part of the answer. One of the purposes of prison is to keep those who are a danger to the public off the streets. Letting those convicted of terror offences out early doesn’t fit with that. It is absurd that someone can plead guilty in November 2018 to possessing and disseminating jihadi materials and then be released in January 2020.
But the other issue is what is going on inside our prisons. It is all too clear that Suddesh Amman did not come out of prison deradicalised. Neither did the London Bridge attacker.
It is not just that the prison system is failing at de-radicalisation, as Ian Acheson—who wrote a hard-hitting review for Michael Gove on the subject—has repeatedly pointed out, but that the amount of Islamist influence in our prisons means that there are people coming out more radicalised than they went in.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in