Record numbers of ex-soldiers in UK jails as combat trauma blamed At least 8,500 former service personnel are in custody - nearly a tenth of the UK prison population. Jamie Doward reports Share 10 inShare1 Email Jamie Doward The Observer, Sunday 31 August 2008 Royal Marines on a mission in Afghanistan They dont have the right equipment and theyre knackered. Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images The number of soldiers who end up in prison for violent offences has increased dramatically in the past four years, according to a report that has raised concerns about the mental health of military personnel returning from war zones. Compiled by probation officers, the report estimates that at least 8,500 former soldiers are in custody - 9 per cent of the UK prison population and nearly double the estimate of a previous study by the Home Office in 2004, which put the figure at 5 per cent. But even the estimate by Napo, the probation trade union, may be on the low side. In a sign that the Ministry of Defence is increasingly aware of the problem, it recently carried out its own assessment in conjunction with the Ministry of Justice and ex-services charities. A pilot study at Dartmoor prison concluded that almost 17 per cent of inmates had been members of the armed forces.
Posted on: Sat, 25 Oct 2014 12:35:48 +0000
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