MP to visit Oakwood Prison amid Winson Green G4S crisis

Emma Reynolds has accepted an invitation from G4S to visit Oakwood Prison and said the private security firm had 'serious questions to answer' over the crisis at Winson Green.

The private firm runs both prisons but was stripped of control of HMP Birmingham this week and the crisis there has sparked concerns about the future of Oakwood.

The MP for Wolverhampton North East warned that the firm may not be fit to continue running the Featherstone jail after it was announced the Government would be taking over Birmingham Prison for at least six months.

An unannounced inspection of HMP Birmingham revealed widespread problems including prisoners openly smoking drugs, staff asleep on the job and bullying.

However, Ms Reynolds said she was pleased G4S had asked her to visit Oakwood, which she said faced different challenges to its other prison in Winson Green. The Labour MP said one of her key aims would be to find out the ratio of prison officers to prisoners, following concerns unruly inmates had taken over HMP Birmingham.

More than 2,000 prisoners are housed at Oakwood. Prison managers were praised following an inspection earlier this year but concerns were raised over drugs and attacks on staff.

She said: "I will be going there with an open mind. The reason I have questioned the competence of G4S is because I think they have questions to answer on why the standards at Birmingham Prison deteriorated so rapidly.

"Oakwood is a different prison with a different prison population and had an overall good inspection."

Ms Reynolds added: "I do think there are serious questions to answer on what has happened at Birmingham. Specifically I will be asking what the ratio is of prison officers to prisoners - that should be a concern for all of us - and what their strategy is for tackling drugs.

"The main threat to the stability of prisons in drugs and all prisons have to deal with this."