Howard League for Penal Reform calls for cut in prison population after 2,000 deaths in jail over a decade

Ministry of Justice figures show Portsmouth Coroner's Court reported one death in prison between 2011-2019.

Central Hampshire Coroner's Court, covering Winchester jail, reported 33 deaths.

The figures also show a death in a bail hostel, that of 66-year-old Anthony Walker who died by hanging at The Grange in Waterlooville 13 days after his release from prison for assaulting his wife in November 2017.

Across England and Wales, 2,317 deaths were reported over the decade in all prison facilities, or within seven days of an inmate's release from custody – with 313 last year alone.

Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: ‘The thousands of people who have died in prison are the victims of a system that puts political expediency above preventing crime and keeping people safe.

‘It is time to reduce the prison population and save lives.’