Latest news with #VanessaFrake
Telegraph
06-08-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Reform is dangerously close to appearing more Left-wing than the Tories
Farage wants you to know that he's not just staunch on immigration – he's also tough on crime. At a press conference this week the party leader unveiled a raft of new proposals, including a push for US style 'supermax' prisons, an end to wokeness in the criminal justice system and more data on the relationship between crime and the asylum system. But I still have the sneaking suspicion Reform aren't quite as tough as they want you to believe they are, not least if their two recent hires are anything to go by. Vanessa Frake, a former head of security in a prison and Reform UK's new justice adviser, immediately made headlines over her stance on transgender prison inmates. When asked on Times Radio if she believed all transgender women should be removed from women's prisons, she answered 'no, I don't think so'. Asked if he agreed with Ms Frake's stance, Mr Farage said on Monday 'I've personally never worked in a prison, so I can't answer it' then distanced himself from her comments yesterday by stating that 'I have never supported men in women's prisons'. This isn't Frake's only view to the Left of Reform's stated policy. She has repeatedly opposed twelve-month prison sentences. Last year she argued in two separate interviews that there is 'no point sending someone to prison for under 12 months' and that 'there are a lot of people in prison who shouldn't be there.' This is quite surprising, given that 99.5 per cent of crimes don't result in a jail sentence. Even Labour haven't yet got rid of short-term prison sentences. Is Frake to the Left of Shabana Mahmood? Yes, Frake is just an advisor, and her views aren't necessary party policy. But why would Farage hire someone who publicly espouses a much softer approach to crime than the general public? Perhaps this embarrassment is the inevitable consequence of attempting to fill party ranks in a relatively short period of time – a problem not helped by Reform's insistence in recruiting a parade of unimpressive former Tories. Take this week's second hire, Rupert Matthews, the Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner for Leicestershire and author of such tomes as Alien Encounters and Unexplained Ancient Mysteries. There's no evidence Matthews is a criminal policy titan – Leicestershire police force is currently rated 'requires improvement' for investigating crime and responding to the public – but Reform have lapped up the defection. The same goes for Jake Berry, a pro net zero Remainer who served as Conservative party chairman under Liz Truss, inexplicably boosted as a major defector by Farage. Another problematic Tory get is Linden Kemkaran, a former Conservative candidate turned Reform leader of Kent County Council. Shortly after assuming office, Kemkaran wrote to the Government to express 'grave concern' about planned tightening of requirements for health and care visas: a pro-migration stance that is hardly ideal for a rising star in the party. Farage has been on a journey. He veers wildly over whether he wishes to deport illegal migrants. The urge to reach a larger share of the electorate will ring in the siren call of 'moderation'. But continued sloppiness over hires could leave Kemi Badenoch's Tories looking like the real Right-wing alternative to Labour.
Daily Mail
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Reform's prison tsar 'more than happy' to open door to death penalty debate
By Reform's new prison tsar has said she is 'more than happy' to discuss MPs thoughts on the death penalty - after Nigel Farage ruled the punishment out. Vanessa Frake, the former head of security at HMP Wormwood Scrubs, was revealed yesterday as the party's adviser on crime. The 62-year-old was quizzed today on her capital punishment stance - and while she denied personally backing a change in the law, Ms Frake opened the doors to a debate. She told LBC: 'Look, I'm more than happy to discuss the death penalty… 'If you'd have asked me that question 20 years ago, I'd have said absolutely, no hesitation - I support the death penalty. 'But, you know, a lot has changed over the years with convictions being unsafe. 'And is it really a deterrent? Is it a deterrent in the United States, in the states that have the death penalty? 'No, it's not. I'd much rather those people spent whatever life they have behind bars.' The prison tsar went on to clarify she was 'open to discussion' but 'not an advocate of it (the death penalty) full-blown.' Ms Frake, who has been brought in by Reform UK to help boost their prison and justice policy, oversaw a number of notorious inmates during her time in the prison service. Among these were serial killer Rose West, Moors murderer Myra Hindley and Libertines frontman, Pete Doherty. Her comments today came despite Mr Farage previously insisting 'nothing on the death penalty will be part of party policy'. In June, he told The Sun: 'These are issues of conscience, just as the assisted dying debate will be when it comes up on Friday, just as the abortion limit. 'These are all issues of conscience. Nothing on the death penalty will be part of party policy. 'I have to say, personally, given there have been 500 quite serious miscarriages of justice in this country since the early 1970s, I don't think I could ever support it. But I understand why others take a different point of view. 'Although I do think it's quite interesting there's a younger generation coming through who seem to increasingly support the death penalty. 'And I suspect it will be back within the next decade as an issue of major national debate. Not quite yet, but it's coming. 'But, certainly, these things will not be party policy, far, far from it.' A poll from More in Common UK released in January found a majority of Brits supported reinstating the death penalty in the UK, with Millennials offering the strongest support. Three in five (58 per cent) of Millennials born between 1981 and 1986 said they believed capital punishment should be reintroduced. Reform names like David Bull - the new party chairman - have backed looking at the death penalty, as well as Lee Anderson - one of the party's five MPs - who is a long-standing supporter. The party says its focus over the summer will be on crime and immigration as bosses attempt to flesh out policy platforms. Ms Frake said Reform UK is 'refreshing' following her work under various parties over the years in the prison service. 'And I received a phone call from Reform last week asking for my opinion on prisons, the first time that anybody has ever asked me from a political party. 'I'm not saying we'll agree on everything, we probably won't, but that's politics, that's policy making. And I think that, you know, I spent 27 years in the prison service and I am greatly saddened by how things are run now. 'I feel for the prison staff who have to do a very difficult job on a daily basis in very difficult circumstances. 'Finally, somebody has asked somebody from the Prison Service who's actually lived that experience to share their knowledge, and I'm more than happy to do so.' Ms Frake said she had only been contacted by Reform about the role four days before it was announced. She said she would like to see funding for prisons restored alongside attempts to extend sentences and lock more people up. The appointment comes as Mr Farage yesterday failed to commit to banning transgender women from female prisons - after Ms Frake said the inmates should not be automatically barred. Ms Frake had argued the decisions should be made on an 'individual basis'. 'But in terms of the problems in prisons, it's a relatively small one.' A Reform spokesman later added of Ms Frake: 'An ex-prison governor... has a different opinion. That does not constitute party policy.' In the interview to mark her appointment, Ms Frake had said decisions about transgender prisoners should be made on a case-by-case basis. But she told The Times that sexual offenders may need to be held in male prisons. 'It's all about the risk assessments for me, and each has to be done on an individual basis,' she said. She added the transgender prisoners she had overseen were 'accepted' by other inmates, saying: 'People who want to just say a blanket ban clearly have never stepped foot in a prison and seen how prison runs and how risk assessments on individuals happen.' The prison tsar told LBC today the biggest lesson she had learned over the years was 'how to compartmentalise' what she saw on a daily basis. Ms Frake said: 'I looked after Rose west for about four or five months. The woman's a typical psychopath. 'You know, she has absolutely no emotional intelligence. And, you know, people who are of that ilk, they don't have it tattooed on their forehead. And that is why they are psychopaths. 'But at the end of the day, they're nobody special, they're prisoners.'
Daily Mail
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Reform's prison tsar 'more than happy' to open door to death penalty debate - despite Nigel Farage saying he could 'never support' capital punishment
Reform's new prison tsar has said she is 'more than happy' to discuss MPs thoughts on the death penalty - after Nigel Farage ruled the punishment out. Vanessa Frake, the former head of security at HMP Wormwood Scrubs, was revealed yesterday as the party's adviser on crime. The 62-year-old was quizzed today on her capital punishment stance - and while she denied personally backing a change in the law, Ms Frake opened the doors to a debate. She told LBC: 'Look, I'm more than happy to discuss the death penalty… 'If you'd have asked me that question 20 years ago, I'd have said absolutely, no hesitation - I support the death penalty. 'But, you know, a lot has changed over the years with convictions being unsafe. 'And is it really a deterrent? Is it a deterrent in the United States, in the states that have the death penalty? 'No, it's not. I'd much rather those people spent whatever life they have behind bars.' The prison Tsar, who previously oversaw Rose West, told LBC: 'Look, I'm more than happy to discuss the death penalty…' The prison tsar went on to clarify she was 'open to discussion' but 'not an advocate of it (the death penalty) full-blown.' Ms Frake, who has been brought in by Reform UK to help boost their prison and justice policy, oversaw a number of notorious inmates during her time in the prison service. Among these were serial killer Rose West, Moors murderer Myra Hindley and Libertines frontman, Pete Doherty. Her comments today came despite Mr Farage previously insisting 'nothing on the death penalty will be part of party policy'. In June, he told The Sun: 'These are issues of conscience, just as the assisted dying debate will be when it comes up on Friday, just as the abortion limit. 'These are all issues of conscience. Nothing on the death penalty will be part of party policy. 'I have to say, personally, given there have been 500 quite serious miscarriages of justice in this country since the early 1970s, I don't think I could ever support it. But I understand why others take a different point of view. 'Although I do think it's quite interesting there's a younger generation coming through who seem to increasingly support the death penalty. 'And I suspect it will be back within the next decade as an issue of major national debate. Not quite yet, but it's coming. 'But, certainly, these things will not be party policy, far, far from it.' A poll from More in Common UK released in January found a majority of Brits supported reinstating the death penalty in the UK, with Millennials offering the strongest support. Three in five (58 per cent) of Millennials born between 1981 and 1986 said they believed capital punishment should be reintroduced. Reform names like David Bull - the new party chairman - have backed looking at the death penalty, as well as Lee Anderson - one of the party's five MPs - who is a long-standing supporter. The party says its focus over the summer will be on crime and immigration as bosses attempt to flesh out policy platforms. Ms Frake said Reform UK is 'refreshing' following her work under various parties over the years in the prison service. She said: 'You can either stand by and moan about the state of things or you can stand up and speak about them. 'And I received a phone call from Reform last week asking for my opinion on prisons, the first time that anybody has ever asked me from a political party. 'I'm not saying we'll agree on everything, we probably won't, but that's politics, that's policy making. And I think that, you know, I spent 27 years in the prison service and I am greatly saddened by how things are run now. 'I feel for the prison staff who have to do a very difficult job on a daily basis in very difficult circumstances. 'Finally, somebody has asked somebody from the Prison Service who's actually lived that experience to share their knowledge, and I'm more than happy to do so.' Ms Frake said she had only been contacted by Reform about the role four days before it was announced. She said she would like to see funding for prisons restored alongside attempts to extend sentences and lock more people up. The appointment comes as Mr Farage yesterday failed to commit to banning transgender women from female prisons - after Ms Frake said the inmates should not be automatically barred. Ms Frake had argued the decisions should be made on an 'individual basis'. Asked for his views on her comments yesterday, the Reform UK leader told the Daily Mail: 'I've personally never worked in a prison so I can't answer [the question] but I think you'll find that the answer that you'll get from somebody who has worked in prisons at the highest possible level is, I think, basically it's about risk assessment, isn't it? 'But in terms of the problems in prisons, it's a relatively small one.' A Reform spokesman later added of Ms Frake: 'An ex-prison governor... has a different opinion. That does not constitute party policy.' In the interview to mark her appointment, Ms Frake had said decisions about transgender prisoners should be made on a case-by-case basis. But she told The Times that sexual offenders may need to be held in male prisons. 'It's all about the risk assessments for me, and each has to be done on an individual basis,' she said. She added the transgender prisoners she had overseen were 'accepted' by other inmates, saying: 'People who want to just say a blanket ban clearly have never stepped foot in a prison and seen how prison runs and how risk assessments on individuals happen.' The prison tsar told LBC today the biggest lesson she had learned over the years was 'how to compartmentalise' what she saw on a daily basis. Ms Frake said: 'I looked after Rose west for about four or five months. The woman's a typical psychopath. 'You know, she has absolutely no emotional intelligence. And, you know, people who are of that ilk, they don't have it tattooed on their forehead. And that is why they are psychopaths. 'But at the end of the day, they're nobody special, they're prisoners.'
Spectator
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Spectator
Reform's trans prisoner policy is a mess
Reform are in the headlines again, this time over confusion about their policy on trans prisoners. Yesterday Vanessa Frake, former prison governor and Reform's UK justice adviser, said that trans women should not automatically be removed from women's prisons, preferring an individual risk assessment. Nigel Farage seemed to echo this view, deferring to her experience and saying 'it's basically about risk assessment'. This announcement put the party at odds with the recent Supreme Court ruling on the meaning of 'sex'. It also put it at odds with reality. Reform have since issued a partial disavowal, with Andrew Southall, one of the party's MP candidates in 2024, tweeting that 'Vanessa Frake is an adviser, not a policy maker', and that the party 'does NOT support putting biological men in women's prisons'. However also wrote that no man 'belongs in a women's prison if there's any risk to safety', which leaves the door open for exactly the risk assessments Frake, along with much of the Prison Service, prefers. Frake's announcement has raised criticism from across the political spectrum, with Rupert Lowe telling me that, 'Sex is immutable, and law must reflect that…under no circumstances must males be permitted to enter female spaces, especially in prisons, where the risk of violence is elevated. That Reform are still five years behind on this debate is concerning given their present electoral prospects – they must get up to speed with where political and cultural discourse is in 2025.' Robert Jenrick, the Shadow Justice Secretary said 'men don't belong in women's prisons. It's as simple as that. It's a clear risk to the safety of female prisoners, and it unwinds the welcome, overdue change that the Supreme Court's recent decision has led to. On this, Frake's instincts are clearly out of step with the views of the majority of the British public.' At the moment Reform's position would put it to the left of the Lord Chancellor. Shabana Mahmood is very much seen as 'gender critical' within Labour politics. Despite inheriting a Tory policy under which trans prisoners can be moved to women's jails if they've had surgery and are not sex offenders, and if the Secretary of State approves it, no such moves have taken place since Mahmood took office. Indeed her remarks since the Supreme Court ruling point at her desire to tighten the rule. Interviewed yesterday, Frake said 'I'm not an expert on trans people. All that I know is that everybody should be treated with humanity and decency'. Does humanity and decency require we place men of any sort in women's prisons? From my experience I say absolutely not. When I was a prisoner at HMP Wandsworth a number of trans 'women' were jailed there. The prison kept them on the 'Vulnerable Prisoners' (VPs) wing, and one of them regularly attended the library where I worked. The prisoner dressed as a woman, and had clearly had surgery. There were no problems with them being in a men's prison. Of course, our prisons are not safe environments, but those on VP wings are safer than the average prisoner, and trans prisoners do not have their humanity or decency violated any more than any other inmate in a men's jail. Even more important though, is the way in which transferring these men to women's prisons would violate the humanity and decency of those women. More than half of women in prison were abused as children (often at the hands of men), while almost 60 per cent have been victims of domestic abuse. Forcing these women to live with men, even men who 'present as women', is abusive and likely to retraumatise them. It also presents obvious risks to their safety. There is nothing decent about choosing to prioritise the demands of a very small number of men over the needs and rights of very vulnerable women. Reform are also standing against public opinion here. Recent polling shows that the British people have become far more sceptical on trans issues. The polling company did not ask about prisons, but with 60 per cent saying that trans 'women' should not be allowed to use women's changing rooms, it's reasonable to believe that a clear majority want prisons to stay single-sex. Reality, and the Supreme Court are clear: sex matters. Trans 'women' do not have a right to enter women's spaces, and the old demands that we 'be kind' hold no power. Frake, and Reform have simply got this wrong. When the Supreme Court, the Labour Lord Chancellor, Rupert Lowe and the electorate disagree with you, it's time to think again. There are signs this morning that the party is listening. A spokesman said 'an ex-prison governor who is advising…has a different opinion. That does not constitute party policy'. Meanwhile Farage has tweeted that he has 'never supported men in women's prisons', to which Rupert Lowe replied 'you did yesterday'. The last 24 hours have not reflected well on Reform. If they are to be treated as a government-in-waiting, they need to get serious, and clear about policy.
Daily Mail
04-08-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Nigel Farage will NOT pledge to ban trans inmates from women's jails
Nigel Farage has failed to commit to banning trans women from female prisons after his new justice adviser said they should not be automatically barred. Vanessa Frake, a former prison governor who oversaw the detention of Rose West, said decisions on where to house inmates should be made on an 'individual basis'. Asked for his views on her comments yesterday, the Reform UK leader told the Daily Mail: 'I've personally never worked in a prison so I can't answer [the question] but I think you'll find that the answer that you'll get from somebody who has worked in prisons at the highest possible level is, I think, basically it's about risk assessment, isn't it? 'But in terms of the problems in prisons, it's a relatively small one.' A Reform spokesman later added of Ms Frake: 'An ex-prison governor... has a different opinion. That does not constitute party policy.' In an interview to mark her appointment, Ms Frake said decisions about trans prisoners should be made on a case-by-case basis. But she told The Times that sexual offenders may need to be held in male prisons. 'It's all about the risk assessments for me, and each has to be done on an individual basis,' she said. Ms Frake said trans prisoners she had overseen were 'accepted' by other inmates and added: 'People who want to just say a blanket ban clearly have never stepped foot in a prison and seen how prison runs and how risk assessments on individuals happen.' But Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said Reform's 'law and order' plan was 'hiding a complete betrayal of women's safety'. 'Nigel Farage promised a major crime announcement but instead delivered an adviser who thinks men belong in women's prisons. 'Farage calls that a 'small' issue – tell that to the women who've been sexually assaulted and terrorised behind bars.' Mr Farage criticised 'transgender indoctrination' in Britain earlier this year but has also defended his record on trans rights. This year the Supreme Court ruled trans women can be excluded from women-only spaces, including prisons.
