Payouts toprisonersdouble toover £3m

The figure includes 1.6m paid out in 12 cases of medical negligence settled in 2009/10 and more than 530,000 paid to victims of assaults by prison staff.

In 2008/09 a total of 1,669,312 was paid out but in 2009/10 payments totalled 3,286,521.

Figures released by the Ministry of Justice in response to a Freedom of Information request show that last year:

n 1,609,250 was paid out in medical negligence cases;

n 534,628 was paid out in compensation for assaults by staff;

n 259,943 was paid out for unlawful detention.

The figures reveal that in the last five years 13,069,631 was paid out in compensation.

The highest single payout since 2005/06 was 2.8m for a personal injury claim, with the second biggest payment 1.14m for medical negligence.

Compensation paid out for assaults by staff tripled last year to 512,225 from 165,950 in 2008/09, the figures showed.

The number of settlements over assaults by staff also increased to 19 in 2009/10, more than at any time in the past five years, the figures showed.

There were just seven such settlements in 2008/09, nine in 2007/08, 10 in 2006/07 and five in 2005/06.

The Ministry of Justice also lost two court cases over assaults by staff in 2009/10 and was ordered to pay out a further 22,403.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “Like all citizens it is open to prisoners, staff and third parties to pursue civil litigation claims for any perceived wrongdoing. Each litigation case is dealt with on its merits and, so far as the evidence allows, all claims are robustly defended.”

Emma Boon of the Taxpayers’ Alliance said: “It is a disgrace that criminals are able to claim so much cash from compensation claims, especially at a time when budgets are already stretched.”