Government rejects Yorkshire MP's call for female prisoner uniforms

A Tory MP's call for female prisoners to have to wear a uniform has been slapped down by the Government.
Conservative MP for Shipley, Philip Davies.Conservative MP for Shipley, Philip Davies.
Conservative MP for Shipley, Philip Davies.

Philip Davies, the MP for Shipley, suggested it was unfair that male prisoners have to wear uniforms while their female counterparts do not.

But Justice Minister Phillip Lee rejected Mr Davies’ demand for “equality” as he insisted a “gender specific approach” to prisoners was the right approach to take.

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Mr Davies said: “Both boys and girls have to wear uniforms at school.

“Both men and women have to wear uniforms equally in the workplace.

“But convicted men have to wear uniforms in prison but convicted women don’t.

“Does the minister agree with that and if he does agree with that then what does the word equality mean to him?”

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Responding during justice questions in the Commons, Mr Lee replied: “You have a rich track record in this area that I’m aware of.

“What I would say on this is that women are twice as likely to report experiences of abuse as a child.

“They are more likely than men to be primary or sole carers of their children.

“They are more likely to display mental health problems and indeed past class A drug use.

“I think it is important that we have a gender specific approach to women and if that involves different uniforms then so be it.”