The case for market testing our prisons

Yesterday’s report by the think-tank Reform makes the case for ‘market-testing’ all prisons in England and Wales. The implication is that many existing public sector prisons would not be able to compete with private sector competition, and a large number of public prisons would be transferred into private management. Simon Bastow finds that, as an exercise in ‘thought leadership’, the report is certainly bold and raises interesting points. But is wholesale market testing likely? Not any time soon.