Disgraced Lord Hanningfield wants prison reform (From Echo)
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Disgraced Lord Hanningfield wants prison reform
6:00am Monday 6th August 2012 in News By Adam Cornell
Lord Hanningfield
DISGRACED peer Lord Hanningfield has revealed he is looking to use his prison experience to help others.
The former Tory leader of Essex County Council, who served a quarter of a nine-month sentence for fiddling his House of Lords expenses, says he has returned to his patrliamentary work.
He has advertised for a researcher to help him with a new reform campaign.
Lord Hanningfield – real name Paul White – wants the staffer to help him work on a plan for prison reform and mental health improvements from October.
He said: “The whole idea of prison reform is to stop reoffending and to give young people a chance before we get a new generation in prison.
“I saw how the young children suffer and how prison visitor rooms are like playschool.
“The young people themselves are not getting the help for the future they need and a lot more needs to be done.”
Lord Hanningfield claimed nearly £14,000 for overnight stays in London and journeys he never made or someone else paid for. On one occasion, he was on a plane to India.
He suggested he may not have been jailed were it not for the public and media furore surrounding the expenses scandal.
He claims his age, 71, gives him a unique perspective, coupled with 40 years of public service. He still struggles to come to terms with his imprisonment. He added: “There are not many people like me.
“I was in for a short time. Other people wouldn’t have been jailed for £13,000 of parliamentary expenses, but it was all hyped up by the media, so there was no choice.
“But having had the experience, I know there needs to be reform and improvement in the education offered in prison to people, some of whom can’t read or write.”
Lord Hanningfield is also hoping to increase people’s understanding of mental health issues. He said: “I have been through acute depression myself and had to have treatment for it.
“A lot of people are in prison with mental problems and a lot were involved in crime because of the same mental problems.
“For me, it was more traumatic before I was in prison because of the publicity, but I have learnt from it and want to use the experience to help others now.”
Comments are closed on this article.
Comments (39)
6:58am Mon 6 Aug 12
152 says...
6:59am Mon 6 Aug 12
152 says...
7:44am Mon 6 Aug 12
jxr says...
Yep, he sounds really remorseful! Full of bitterness because he feels hard done by, and just brushing over the fact he defrauded the taxpayer.
Lying, cheating scumbag.
8:46am Mon 6 Aug 12
Brunning999 says...
A Corrupt convicted villain that now thinks he can gain some respectability again by trying to buldhit us!!
Will go to hell mate because you are a convicted thief basically.
9:41am Mon 6 Aug 12
Tommy the Tank says...
Hanningfield's debt to today's society has in no way been paid. He bleats about the sentence he received suggesting that it would have been less had it not been for media attention- of course he courted the media in his political life when it suited him.
Now a message for the man himself:
A little humility and taking responsibility for your greed, Hanningfield- that's what the 'ordinary' people want to see. Now, don your Marigolds and get scrubbing and one day you might deserve to sit at the same table as decent, honest, hard working people.
9:50am Mon 6 Aug 12
doasilikey says...
Phew! That's a relief- the country really would be skint if there were too many people like him.
10:28am Mon 6 Aug 12
andyh says...
The wrong question was asked about his expenses - it should not have been "is this detail correct?"; rather it should have been "is the amount he has gained from public funds reasonable as an overall payment for work done?". The Lords does not pay a salary.
10:48am Mon 6 Aug 12
nicknows says...
The sheer arrogance of the man!!!!!!!!!
Whilst no doubt there are need for some reforms within our prisons I am sure there are many people far more qualified than this jumped up T*** to do so.
After all he was only convicted of stealing money from the public coffers I would hazard a guess that whilst he has repaid £30,000.00 the sum involved is much more!!!!!
11:20am Mon 6 Aug 12
Cockle says...
He was claiming for overnight hotel stays in London when he wasn't, on some occasions, even in the country; even a child would know that that isn't right.
I have seen examples in my company where people have been dismissed from employment for claiming an extra hour's overtime that they hadn't done as it was regarded as a betrayal of trust and tantamount to fraud, and trust me, the amount was nowhere near £13k.
He also conveniently forgets that he is, I believe, still being investigated with regard to his claims as head of Essex County Council and possible inappropriate use of his ECC car and chaffeur. It is possible he could still face charges for that.
A little remorse would be a little more appropriate rather than the crocodile tears.
11:28am Mon 6 Aug 12
E-Types. says...
Would it beyond the topsy-turvey norm of politics for this disgraces 'lord' to be elevated to the minister of prisons?
11:58am Mon 6 Aug 12
nicknows says...
So as well as expenses he could claim a minimum of £150.00 for each day he attends Parliament no matter if he is only there for 10 minutes.
He is free to carry out work in any other guise unlike MP’s who are elected to represent the people and are therefore classed as paid employees and receive a salary for doing so.
12:58pm Mon 6 Aug 12
emcee says...
5:38pm Mon 6 Aug 12
E - Types says...
6:08pm Mon 6 Aug 12
jolllyboy says...
It makes me sick.Retire.
6:36pm Mon 6 Aug 12
E-Types. says...
8:03pm Mon 6 Aug 12
bdps66 says...
I personally am sick and tired of hearing about the poor, poor inmates of our prisons. Why don't you do something useful with this experience and knowledge you have gained and help the public who are the real victims of those people you are sticking up for and supporting.
And just how you manage to weedle your way back into a job after committing and being found guilty of fraud amazes me. Only in Government obviously.
10:18pm Mon 6 Aug 12
King 'El says...
10:20pm Mon 6 Aug 12
King 'El says...
9:09am Tue 7 Aug 12
muffindamule says...
11:12am Tue 7 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
11:14am Tue 7 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
2:38pm Tue 7 Aug 12
John T Pharro says...
6:20pm Tue 7 Aug 12
King 'El says...
9:46pm Tue 7 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
3:09pm Wed 8 Aug 12
Mslightfoot says...
Disgraceful - Lord ! - Kiss my behind - he should never be allowed to hold any office, any other convicted criminal wouldn't be allowed to - that is what is wrong with this country - greedy sods like him.
Makes my blood boil.
10:22am Thu 9 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
11:53am Thu 9 Aug 12
Squirm says...
If he starts a charity guess who will look after the cheque book. What does anyone expect from a pig...except a grunt!
11:53am Thu 9 Aug 12
SUFC1906 says...
1:25pm Thu 9 Aug 12
Hugh.Janus says...
There are many different types of prisoner, majority of whom will take to the programmes that are offered in prison to assist them to be accepted outside and to be able to leave prison with skills other than criminal skills. It is clearly documented on what is available to prisoners once they have been sentenced.
There is a hard core of prisoners who spend most of their lives in and out of a prison and have no intention of reforming themselves and given the first opportunity to re-offend, they will take it and likely end up inside again.
What is required is the ability of the offender to come to terms with what they have done and stop re-offending, the prions today give the offender that opportunity.
Unfortunately we have around 82K offenders currently in prison which you and I pay for, we also pay through their crimes. So it is not prisons that need reforming, its the offenders. What Lord H refers to is somewhat beyond me as there is not way with the shortness of his sentence will he have had the opportunity to assess the conditions to make a statement that he needs to reform anything.
2:27pm Thu 9 Aug 12
E- Types. says...
2:38pm Thu 9 Aug 12
Gina the weaner says...
7:07pm Thu 9 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
Now i again try to extract some evidence of what you contend about my intelligence...can you give a example, a little one even or a minute one or anything to show what you post is even slightly correct? Anything to prove you are not a feebleminded twerp with the brain matter of an empty headed grasshopper.
7:08pm Thu 9 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
11:33pm Thu 9 Aug 12
E- Types. says...
11:58pm Thu 9 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
10:09am Fri 10 Aug 12
CALL ME CLINT says...
11:38am Fri 10 Aug 12
E-Types.. says...
As for clown, if im that then you are a clown assistant for you have been slapped back under the stone you crept from appearing now and again to post just as you have. Weak and pathetic.
In the words of Bob Dylan "The times are a-changing" you can see evidence of that from the posts at the start of the year to the post now...
11:49am Fri 10 Aug 12
nicknows says...
Lord Hanningfield got caught but in no way is he either reformed or paid his debt to society!
Yes I know he paid the money back that he got caught out stealing but he should have paid back at least ten times that amount as a token of his remorse!!!!!!!!!!
12:47pm Fri 10 Aug 12
bdps66 says...