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The prison smoking ban – unfeasible and indefensible?

University of Exeter

4 min read Partner content

Dr Anna Kotova, Associate Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Exeter, argues that the smoking ban could lead to fights, rioting, and higher levels of prison suicide.


Despite some prisons having become smoke-free zones since 2016, 31st of August 2017 will see all high security prisons in England and Wales banning prisoners from smoking in their cells and in the yard. Smoking is a long-standing feature of prison life in the UK, with cigarettes being used to pass the time and as currency between prisoners. Cigarettes – or 'burn', as they are known in prison – can be exchanged for haircuts, for example. It is estimated that up to 80% of prisoners are active smokers.

The harms of smoking have, of course, been well documented and include both harms to the smoker himself and those associated with second-hand smoking. With many public spaces becoming no-smoking zones and a general decrease in tolerance for smoking in today's society, it seems difficult to argue against the introduction of a smoking ban in prisons. After all, the needs of non-smoking officers and inmates also ought to be considered. The latter group are especially pertinent, since some have to share cells with smokers. Although smokers and non-smokers are, in theory, not supposed to be placed in the same cells, this is not always possible due to overcrowding.

Yet is a smoking ban feasible in the prison context? A notice to prisoners, which has gone viral in the last few days, states that smokers are encouraged to seek healthcare advice prior to August 31st.Provision of services such as 'Stop Smoking' is dependent on having an adequate number of officers and healthcare staff trained to deliver them.As it stands, prisons are already under-staffed, and officers would need training to provide such cessation courses. Bearing in mind that the vast majority of prisoners are smokers, there will need to be a huge investment in staff training and service provision, which does not seem to be possible in the short amount of time before August 31st. A recent undercover BBC documentary (Panorama: Behind Bars - Prisons Undercover, Feb 2017) also revealed that in one prison at least, officers were unable to stop smoking of illegal drugs. This could mean that a smoking ban will, at the very least, be simply ineffectual.

The ban could also be downright dangerous. The prison is a tense, emotionally charged environment, and if smokers are unable to access nicotine, then fights and rioting could increase.
This is at a time when prison violence is already at record levels. Total smoking bans have been implemented on the Isle of Man – where disciplinary offences have since increased, indicating what might occur in prisons in England and Wales. Levels of prison suicides are highest since records began, and could further increase if smoking becomes unavailable to those prisoners who use it as a coping strategy.

Of course, the ban could simply result in higher levels of contraband tobacco products. We know that illegal drugs and mobile phones are already being smuggled into prisons, and tobacco may simply become one more item on a list of substances that the prison estate is unable to prevent from entering our prisons. Yet being caught with it may then result in prisoners spending more time in prison, thus reinforcing a vicious cycle of more and more men and women being recycled through the prison system. If tobacco becomes a contraband item, prisoners' debts, and, consequently, infighting and violence could increase.

A better solution would be to introduce smoking and non-smoking areas in prisons, but this would likely require number of officers (for supervision) and logistical changes that the current prison system would not be able to accommodate. It is simply easier to ban smoking altogether, without careful consideration of the implications of such a ban. On the whole, this ban comes in at a wrong time – there are other concerns that ought to be dealt with first. The only people who will likely benefit from this ban will be entrepreneurial smugglers.

Dr Anna Kotova is a Associate Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Exeter

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