SPACE (countylinescce on Bsky)

@bespaceaware “ no connection to the dismissive & harmful 'response' they're dished out “ this is alarming

I used to be such a huge fan of @JamesTCobbler, and was loving his appointment as Minister of Prisons in 2024 by @Keir_Starmer; but it's shocking to see him become so spineless, and morally bankrupt, after such a short tenure in politics. For the record – I am a huge prison reformist, and truly believe most of the people in prison have been failed, shouldn't be there, and are only being further harmed in being locked up in a broken carceral system. But how James can centre these long overdue prison reforms entirely on women, when they comprise just 4% of the prison population, is utterly shameful, devoid of common sense, compassion, human decency, and couldn't be a clearer example of "two tier" justice. Why is he doing this? Experiences of Abuse James argues many women in prison are victims of abuse, and they are: research by the Prison Reform Trust indicates 53% of female prisoners report being abused as children. But 29% of male prisoners report the same, showing abuse is a substantial issue for both sexes. Source: prisonreformtrust.org.uk/prisoners-need… Mental Health Issues James argues many women in prison have mental health issues, and they do; 76% of female prisoners have mental health issues; however 70% of male prisoners report the same. Source/s: prisonreformtrust.org.uk/wp-content/upl… publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cm… Parenting Roles James says many mothers are imprisoned, and this harms families; and I agree, they are, and it does. However a similar percentage of male prisoners are fathers too; the Government estimates 53% of male prisoners are fathers of dependent children, compared to 55% of female prisoners who are mothers. Source: gov.uk/government/sta… Head Injuries James argues many women in prison have serious brain injuries, and yes, again, they do. 65% of female prisoners have a traumatic brain injury, with slightly lower rates of 51-60% for male prisoners. Source/s committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidenc… theguardian.com/society/2019/f… I could go on, but the point is clear – This is not effective policy at all; it's gutless, ideological, political pandering, that will leave countless thousands of imprisoned men behind, and failed as part of a two-tier justice system. Not only is this policy immoral, it is illegal. The Equality Act of 2010 only allows such discriminatory policy if it is a ‘proportionate’ means of achieving a ‘legitimate aim’. And it is neither of these things. Consider also the stats I gave are percentages, and whilst they are already similar in such relative terms; when you scale for the fact that the male prison population is 25X larger than the female prison population, it means, in absolute terms, each of these issues in male prisons utterly dwarf how prevalent they are in female prisons – which James ignores entirely. My point is simple – Vulnerable prisoners should be helped on the basis of need, not gender. Shame on you James. Your cowardice will cost men their lives.

🔴April 20-21 2026: Join us at the @OSCE Alliance Against Trafficking in Persons Conference: The Rise of Forced Criminality: Addressing a Security Blind Spot. 🙋‍♀️🙋🙋‍♂️Register: cthb.osce.org/event/alliance… Forced criminality is one of the fastest-growing forms of human trafficking: 📈 Worldwide: 1% to 8% in 6 years 📈 OSCE region: 1% (2018) to 17% (2024) Join us at the #CTHB26! #OSCE #ForcedCriminality #EndHumanTrafficking

Children forced to grow drugs. Children forced to sell drugs. Children forced into drug cartels. This can be human trafficking for forced criminality. We must stop it! #CND69

@MAMBarLife I’m boring myself saying this I say it so often but I run into people every week who assumed that courts were where other people ended up.