Government opens first-of-its-kind ‘green’ prison in East Yorkshire

The all-electric prison, which has solar panels and heat pump technology, is the first of four to be built by 2031. Photograph: Danny Lawson/PA

The government has opened a first-of-its-kind “green” prison that will add 1,500 places to the bursting prison estate in England and Wales.

HMP Millsike in East Yorkshire, described by critics as a “megaprison”, will be one of Britain’s biggest jails and is the first of four to be built as part of a programme to create 14,000 extra prison places by 2031.