Tory plan for 20,000 new jail places ‘will be years late and £4bn over budget’ – report

HM Prison Pentonville in London. Tory plans to tackle overcrowding at jails across the UK have been criticised by the National Audit Office. Photograph: Leon Neal/Getty Images

Boris Johnson’s plan to provide 20,000 new prison places by 2026 is due to be completed five years late and billions over budget, a “scathing” assessment by Whitehall’s spending watchdog has found.

The National Audit Office said current plans for prison capacity were “insufficient to meet future demand” amid a projected shortage of 12,400 places by the end of 2027, with costs expected to be at least £4bn higher than initially estimated.