Prison Officials Test Tasers in Response to Safety Concerns for Staff

April 23, 2025 TruthUSA

Three prison officers at HMP Frankland in Durham were attacked with cooking oil and stabbed in a violent assault.

Tasers will be trialled in UK prisons to aid officers in managing high-risk incidents, after a brutal attack involving Hashem Abedi, a plotter of the Manchester Arena bombing, at HMP Frankland.

The trial is scheduled to commence this summer following an incident earlier this month where Abedi injured four prison officers by attacking them with cooking oil and a makeshift weapon.

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood informed MPs on Tuesday about measures being implemented to enhance staff safety post the incident.

“Wherever we can strengthen our defenses to better protect our staff and the public, we will do so,” she stated in the House of Commons.

Access to kitchens in separation centers, which house high-risk offenders, has been suspended while an independent review examines their operations.

Additionally, a review by the Prison and Probation Service will evaluate the utilization of protective body armor for officers.

The Prison Reform Trust commended the investigation, emphasizing the need to learn lessons to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Abedi has been found guilty of murder for his involvement in the bombing at the Manchester Arena in 2017.

He was handed a minimum 55-year prison sentence.

Hashem Abedi in an undated handout image. (Greater Manchester Police/PA) — Hashem Abedi in an undated handout image. Greater Manchester Police/PA

“I am well aware of the dangers posed by extremist ideologies. I will not tolerate them in our prisons,” Mahmood affirmed.

She confirmed that 19 reviews on extremism in prisons have been conducted in the last nine years, resulting in 230 recommendations. An audit will now verify the implementation of those recommendations.

Talks With Union Amid Safety Fears

Mahmood is set to meet representatives from the Prison Officers’ Association (POA) following concerns raised by the union regarding staff safety after the HMP Frankland attack.

POA national chair Mark Fairhurst informed The Epoch Times that the union will strongly advocate for enhanced protections.

“The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has ignored our members for decades. They have dismissed the POA’s calls for action to address the crisis in our prisons but they cannot ignore us any longer.

“We urgently need action to ensure that prison officers working in UK jails are safe and treated with the dignity and respect we deserve,” Fairhurst stated.

The POA described the HMP Frankland attack as a stark reminder of the daily dangers faced by officers.

This represents a 19 percent increase compared to the previous year, with serious assaults on staff rising by 22 percent.

Standard Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for prison officers includes protective gloves, vests, personal alarms, and restraints.

Higher-level defensive tools are reserved for specialist teams.

Fairhurst argued that the current PPE provisions are inadequate for dealing with violent offenders.

“Prison officers deal with some of the country’s most violent criminals and terrorists, yet the current PPE only extends to a baton and PAVA spray, which is insufficient.

“Prison officers need proper equipment for their protection, including stab vests and Tasers where appropriate,” he emphasized.

However, Andrew Neilson, director of campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform, cautioned against increased use of defensive weapons.

“Staff in adult prisons already have access to batons and PAVA spray. However, evidence indicates that staff use of weapons does not reduce violence and harms positive staff-inmate relationships,” he advised The Epoch Times.

Neilson highlighted the need for investment in rehabilitation to address violence.

“Rather than adding pressure in overcrowded and stretched prisons, the best response to rising violence is to offer productive and positive regimes where inmates engage in work, education, and rehabilitative activities,” he suggested.

Prison Estate Crisis

Data released on April 14 disclosed that the prison population in England and Wales has reached 88,081, leaving only 961 available spaces across the estate.

Fairhurst noted that overcrowding fuels tensions, violence, substance misuse, and self-harm in prisons.

“We have consistently raised issues of overcrowding and understaffing, yet no action has been taken. We have also raised concerns about the state of the prison estate and the squalid conditions experienced by our members and the prisoners due to failed privatized prison maintenance, all of which have been dismissed,

“It shouldn’t require a tragic attack at Frankland for government officials and the MOJ to finally listen to frontline prison officers,” he remarked.

The POA emphasized that both overcrowding and understaffing contribute significantly to unsafe environments.

“When there are too many prisoners and insufficient staff, access to education, recreation, visits, healthcare, etc. is restricted for prisoners, and staff’s ability to build positive relationships is hindered.

“This leads to boredom, increased violence, and drug misuse,” Fairhurst concluded.

Government Measures

Projections indicate the prison population in England and Wales will reach between 95,700 and 105,200 by March 2029, with an estimated 100,800 inmates.

The MoJ confirmed that the increase is driven by higher charging rates, increased prosecutorial activity, and sentencing policy changes aimed at prolonging the custody of serious offenders.

Consequently, the government has pledged to provide 14,000 new prison spaces, a commitment inherited from the previous administration.

An independent review of sentencing has also been initiated to ensure capacity aligns with demand.

To address immediate pressures, early release programs have been introduced by ministers.

Last July, Mahmood announced plans to reduce the percentage of Standard Determinate Sentences served in custody from 50 to 40 percent. Since September, thousands of inmates have been released under this policy.

Another initiative to alleviate pressure on the prison system involves expediting the deportation of foreign national offenders, who comprise around 12 percent of the prison population.

Officials believe this action will ease capacity constraints and save taxpayers significant sums of money.

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