Robert Jenrick: Give all prison officers stab vests

Telegraph

12-05-2025

Robert Jenrick has backed all prison officers being given stab vests in the wake of two high-profile assaults in recent weeks.
Axel Rudakubana, the Southport killer, is understood to have thrown boiling water over a guard at HMP Belmarsh on Thursday.
The incident came weeks after Hamesh Abedi, the brother of the Manchester Arena bomber, allegedly attacked three prison officers at HMP Frankland in County Durham.
Abedi is said to have attacked the officers with weapons and cooking oil, leaving two of them with life-threatening injuries. He has since been moved to Belmarsh.
Asking an urgent question in the Commons about the incidents on Monday, Mr Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, said that violence against prison officers was 'out of control'.
He told MPs: 'In just the past month two of Britain's most dangerous terrorists, Axel Rudakabana and Hashem Abedi, have launched vicious attacks on officers in two of our supposedly most secure prisons.
'The Secretary of State has ordered a snap review into the attack at HMP Frankland. Three weeks later, no answers and no action. Every day longer it goes on the safety of officers is at risk.
'So I ask the minister, when will it conclude? Why hasn't every prison officer exposed to dangerous inmates already been provided with a stab vest? Not in June but now, today. I've spoken to officers who say attacks with boiling water are not uncommon.
'Will he commit today to order the removal of every kettle from high-risk prisoners? Not in June but now, today.'
UK must end 'culture of appeasement'
Mr Jenrick said that he 'couldn't care less' if Rudakubana never had a hot drink again and called for a 'culture of appeasement' to come to an end immediately.
He added: 'If this means keeping them in cells with just a bed, so be it. If it means no contact, no privileges, and certainly no cups of tea, so be it. Let segregation finally mean segregation.
'If the Government doesn't get a grip, a prison officer will be killed. We've had enough reviews, we need action. That's the least prison officers deserve.'
Sir Nic Dakin, a justice minister, said the ongoing investigation into the alleged incident involving Rudakubana meant he could not comment in detail.
But he insisted the Government would not tolerate any violence against staff and prison officers, saying the Ministry of Justice was preparing further announcements to protect them.
'Prisoners who are violent towards staff will face the full consequences of their actions,' Sir Nic said.
'The Prison Service has commissioned an investigation, terms of reference are being finalised. This will include details of what happened and why and recommendations to prevent recurrences. We will provide updates to Parliament in due course.
'We will make further announcements in the coming days. Our prison officers are some of the most hard-working and brave public servants this country has.'
The Sun, which first reported the story, said last week that officers were alerted to the guard's screams and restrained Rudakubana.
Rudakubana was jailed for a minimum of 52 years in January after admitting the murders of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport on July 29 last year.
He was handed 13 life sentences for the murders of Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, as well as 10 attempted murders.
Rudakubana only avoided a whole life sentence because he was nine days too young.
He also pleaded guilty to producing ricin, a biological toxin, and possessing an al-Qaeda training manual – an offence under the Terrorism Act.
Abedi, meanwhile, is serving life for 22 murders in the Manchester Arena bombing.
The officers suffered burns and stab wounds when he threw hot cooking oil over them before using makeshift weapons to stab the guards, according to the Prison Officers Association.
'Rights of prisoners take precedence over safety of staff'
Ian Acheson, a former prison governor who advised the Government on extremism, said over the weekend that dangerous prisoners should not be able to keep kettles in their cells.
He told The Telegraph: 'Decisions about what is held in possession in a cell is at the discretion of governors, who should be applying dynamic risk assessments to control any potential harm based on previous or reasonably anticipated behaviour.
'This process seems to have fallen apart at HMP Belmarsh and other high-security prisons where the rights of prisoners take precedence over safety of staff and a naive assumption that giving them things including potentially lethal weapons will appease them.'