Glyn Travis of the Prison Officers’ Association says British jails are so cushy that  even seasoned escapers prefer to stay inside.

In comments widely reported on Friday (available to browse here), he lists a series of home comforts enjoyed by inmates reminiscent of Ronnie Barker’s reign at HMP Slade in “Porridge” – breakfast in bed, control over the staff, visits from prostitutes and so on.

Do you have any experience of the Prison Service on either side of the fence? Do you agree with Travis’ remarks?  

Two initiatives have focused the mind on badly behaved children this week and how to deal with them.

Under the first, Children’s Secretary Ed Balls proposes that trouble-makers as young as 10 should sign a good behaviour contract . The “most challenging” among them will have to stick to the order or risk a criminal record.

The second, more extreme, suggestion comes from Gary Pugh, forensic science director for the Metropolitan Police, who was quoted in The Observer as saying trouble makers as young as five should be recorded on the national DNA database because future offenders can be picked out an early age.

The idea has been widely criticised, both by those who dislike the idea of stigmatising children at such a young age and those who bemoan what they call the government’s obsession with compiling databases — and its embarrassing tendency to lose personal data. The government has been non-committal but says it is listening to all views.

Do you believe law enforcement authorities need more tools at their disposal to deal with unruly children?