Inmates at troubled Birmingham Prison were “walking around like zombies, high on Spice” in an environment likened to a warzone, inspectors have said. More details have been revealed about the “appalling” conditions uncovered at the jail this summer, which led to the government taking it over from G4S. Just 12 of 70 recommendations made by inspectors in 2017 had been met when they returned unannounced in July. G4S said it continued to work with the Ministry of Justice.
Inspectors said they found “drug taking was barely concealed” at the category B jail, where three “likely” drug-related deaths had occurred since the last inspection.
