Taxpayers Locked into £104m for Unusable Dartmoor Prison

The Ministry of Justice signed a 10-year lease on HMP Dartmoor in 2022, securing 640 prison places amid overcrowding. Two years later, the Category C facility closed due to radon levels up to 10 times the safe limit. Taxpayers now face costs exceeding £100 million for an empty site.

Radon monitoring began in 2010. Elevated readings surfaced in 2020, with earlier detections possible from 2007. Officials leased anyway, without further tests, citing urgent need for capacity.

The deal commits £4 million annually in rent, business rates, and security until 2033. An extra £68 million covers site improvements over the lease term. No early termination allowed.

Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee labeled the decision “catastrophic,” struck in “blind panic.” Conservative chair Geoffrey Clifton-Brown called it an “absolute disgrace from top to bottom.” The committee rejected prison pressure as an excuse.

Known Risks Ignored

MoJ permanent secretary Jo Farrar defended the lease as “sensible and pragmatic.” She noted information gaps at the time. Yet 2020 data showed clear elevations; staff and 640 inmates stayed until July 2024.

Over 500 former inmates and officers now sue for health exposure. Radon, a radioactive gas, kills 1,100 Britons yearly via lung cancer. Mitigation attempts failed over 14 years.

The Duchy of Cornwall, owned by Prince William, collects rent regardless. Taxpayers funded £1.5 million last year alone for the abandoned site.

Chronic Prison Crisis Fuels Waste

UK prisons hit breaking point in 2022, with Dartmoor tapped for sex offenders. Successive governments expanded sentences without building capacity. Labour blames inheritance; predecessors point to rising demand.

This mirrors broader procurement failures. Officials prioritize short-term fixes over due diligence. Locked contracts ensure waste persists.

No senior civil servants faced consequences. Prison Officers Association chair Mark Fairhurst called it “abhorrent.” Health and Safety Executive probe continues without resolution.

Institutional Paralysis at Work

Panic leasing reveals how pressure overrides competence. Departments sign binding deals, then discover flaws too late. Cross-party inertia leaves taxpayers footing bills.

Compare to functional governance: Pre-1997, prisons expanded methodically with risk assessments. Now, overcrowding recurs under Tory and Labour stewardship.

Ordinary citizens pay via taxes for unusable assets and legal claims. Victims of crime lose secure facilities. Health risks compound for staff and inmates.

Dartmoor exposes the machinery of decline: Institutions chase capacity at any cost, entrenching fiscal black holes and health scandals. Governments swap excuses, but failure compounds. Britain warehouses people in failing systems, then pays dearly to abandon them.