George Grylls Political Reporter
Prison governors and officers have
been ordered to stop referring to in-
mates as residents, clients or service-
users amid fears that “woke” language
is damaging public confidence in the
criminal justice system.
Dominic Raab, the justice secretary,
has sent a new style guide to all staff in
Call them inmates, prisons told in crackdown on ‘woke’ words
Matt Dathan Home Affairs Editor the prison and probation service on the
language they should use. The guide
instructs them to avoid using the word
“room” when referring to cells.
Those released from jail should not
be referred to as “service-users” or
“clients” but “prison leavers, people
leaving prison, people resettling in the
community and ex-offenders”.
Government sources said Raab was
determined to end such use of “woke”
language. They said the terms had been
subject to derision and had “damaged
public confidence” in efforts to punish
and reform criminals.
Last month Raab visited a prison in
Northamptonshire where he did not
oppose the use of these terms. John
McLaughlin, the governor of HMP
Five Wells in Wellingborough, the firstprison in Britain to have cell windows
without bars, is on first-name terms
with prisoners and refers to them as
“residents”. He said that it was an
attempt to “normalise” their time in
prison so that they could more easily
adjust to life on release.
Asked whether he agreed with the
use of such language during his visit,
Raab said he was interested in the prac-tical steps that could reduce reoffend-
ing rather than “theological” debates. A
government source said it would have
been rude to speak out against the use
of softer language during the visit.
Jo Farrar, head of the prison and
probation service, used the term “resi-
dents” in a speech last year announcing
extra support for prisoners to maintain
ties with their families.Thursday April 28 2022 | thetimes.co.uk | No 73769 £2.20 £1.45 to subscribers(based on 7 Day Print Pack)Polly
Vernon
What your
coffee says
about you
Anna Wintour The woman
behind the shades INSIDE
TIMES
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addressed the
UN security
council in New
York last night to
discuss bringing
potential war
crimes cases
against Russiaing on security camera footage, DNA analysis
and facial-recognition software.
6 Western officials said they believed that
Russia would try to encircle Ukrainian troops
in Donbas over the next four to six weeks, mak-
ing the rapid supply of Nato weapons crucial.
Truss is understood to be concerned about
the risk of Putin deploying short-range nuclear
or chemical weapons in an attempt to breakThe foreign secretary believes that the war in
Ukraine could last for years and fears
President Putin could deploy weapons of mass
destruction in a desperate attempt to break the
deadlock.
Liz Truss, delivering a speech last night at
Mansion House in London, said Putin was a
“rogue operator” and warned that he could
invade other countries, including Georgia and
Moldova.
It is understood that Truss believes the war
could realistically last up to five years, or even
as long as a decade. She called on western
countries to help push Russian troops out of
Ukraine altogether and said that if Putin
succeeded in making territorial gains he could
inflict “untold further misery across Europe”.
Her comments came as the Russian
president appeared to threaten Nato allies
with unspecified weapons, possibly including
nuclear missiles, accusing the West of trying to
“strangle us economically”.
He said: “If anyone intends, and I underline
this again, to intervene in the ongoing events
[in Ukraine] and create unacceptable
strategic threats for Russia, they should know
that our retaliatory strikes will be as quick as
lightning. We have all the tools for this. The
kind that no one else can boast of right now.
But we won’t brag. We will use them if they are
needed. And I want everyone to know this. All
the decisions on this matter have already been
made.”
Speaking in St Petersburg, Putin said that
the war in Ukraine, which has already cost the
lives of an estimated 15,000 Russian soldiers,
would last as long as necessary and “all the
objectives will definitely be carried out”.
In other developments yesterday:
6 Russia announced it would sanction nearly
300 MPs for fuelling “Russophobic hysteria”,
but appeared to be working from an outdated
list of names.
6 Officials in Washington revealed that US
intelligence had helped Ukrainian forces to
shoot down a Russian transport plane carrying
hundreds of troops.
6 An intense effort was under way in Bucha,
near Kyiv, to bring Russian troops accused of
war crimes to justice, with prosecutors draw-
Truss fears Ukraine war
could carry on for years
Now Andrew
has freedom
of York taken
by city council
Valentine LowPrince Andrew, the man with little left
to lose, suffered another indignity last
night when he lost the freedom of York.
Councillors in the city voted unani-
mously to remove the honour, which
was bestowed as a wedding gift in 1987.
Some pressed for further humiliation,
calling for him to be stripped of the title
Duke of York.
The prince has already lost his mili-
tary titles and royal patronages after
the settlement of the civil sexual assault
case brought against him by Virginia
Giuffre, and will no longer use the style
His Royal Highness. Several council-
lors called for Andrew to be stripped of
his dukedom and thereby remove what
Aisling Musson, a Labour councillor,
called “this stain of an association with
this city”.
The freedom of the city is bestowed
to recognise notable service by resi-
dents, distinguished people and royalty.
Other recipients in York have included
the Duke of Wellington, Winston
Churchill and Dame Judi Dench.
Andrew is the first person to have the
honour removed, councillors were told.
Darryl Smalley, the council’s execu-
tive member for culture, leisure and
communities, said: “The honorary free-
dom of York is the highest honour we
can bestow on those who represent the
very best of York. The honour is held by
many notable and accomplished
people who carry it with pride and
responsibility. Having been stripped of
his military roles and royal patronages
by the Queen, we believe that it is right
to remove all links that Prince Andrew
still has with our great city.”
Giuffre’s case against Andrew was
settled out of court in February. The
duke made a donation to her charity for
victims of abuse.Foreign secretary warns other countries face being invaded
TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/GETTY IMAGESthe deadlock in Ukraine. After failing to cap-
ture Kyiv, he has concentrated his troops for a
large offensive in Donbas. Western
intelligence suggests the Kremlin wants to
achieve a breakthrough in time for May 9, a
national holiday in Russia commemorating
the Soviet Union’s victory in the Second
World War. However, defence experts have
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