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It's a monstrous idea to put people in prison and keep them there.

But the single overwhelming reason why jails are bursting is longer sentences given for more crimes.

Jails and prisons are designed to break human beings, to convert the population into specimens in a zoo - obedient to our keepers, but dangerous to each other.

We're rapidly approaching a world comprised entirely of jail and shopping.

We need prisons because there are some hardcore criminals, but I never met a guy who has been in jail that came out with a smile on his face thinking, 'Right, that's it - now I am going to be good!'

Without turning prison life into something more meaningful, prisoners are more likely to reoffend.

People always think about what prison is. What prison really is - it's not a physical challenge, it's mental.

I think there are too many people in jail for too long and for not necessarily good reasons.

Prison has a universal fascination. It's a real-life horror story because, given the right set of circumstances, anyone could find themselves behind bars.

Prison works.