Roma writes about Make Justice Work

Prison is the only justifiable punishment for certain crimes. Serious, violent criminals must be kept behind bars and off our streets so that the public is protected and justice is delivered. That isn’t controversial.

But as Britain searches for answers to the riots which left our major cities reeling, our criminal justice system is under renewed scrutiny How should those who terrorised neighbourhoods, smashed shop windows and looted local businesses be punished? We now know that many of those behind the violence had previous criminal convictions. This shouldn’t surprise us. The majority of offenders who have served a short prison sentence go on to reoffend within a year.