UK prison 'easier to get illegal drugs than clothes or bedsheets'

Inmates have claimed it's easier to get illegal drugs than bedsheets at a prison where standards have dropped to "unacceptable levels", a watchdog report has concluded.

Inspectors found the availability of drugs at HMP Bedford was having a "serious impact" on safety.

In the highly critical report from HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) on Bedford, the number of prisoners saying they had developed a drug problem had increased from 4% to 14% since the last inspection in January 2014.

In this period, the number of inmates who claimed it was easy or very easy to get their hands on drugs had almost doubled.

Chief Inspector of Prisons Peter Clarke said: "The stark reality is that prisoners told us it was easier to get illegal drugs in the prison than it was to get clothes or sheets."

HMIP found many inmates living in cramped conditions, with the report also detailing damaged furniture, graffiti, shortages of clothing and dirty, unscreened showers.

The physical condition of the prison was described as poor.

The chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, Frances Crook, described Bedford as "a good example of everything that is wrong with the prison system", adding: "It is unsafe, overcrowded and understaffed.

"Prisoners can obtain drugs easily but cannot get essentials such as clothes and sheets."

A major factor in the upsurge of violence and self-harm behind bars in England and Wales has been put down to drugs referred to as "legal highs" - before the substances were made subject to a blanket ban rolled out earlier this year.

Justice Secretary Liz Truss has ordered mandatory testing for NPS [new psychoactive substances] to be introduced in jails across England and Wales.

A spokeswoman for the prison service said HMP Bedford is taking action to address the level of substance misuse.