Villagers ignored over ‘model jail’

PLANS for a new “model” prison are to go ahead in a Jura commune despite the 500 villagers rejecting the proposal in a vote. The Prison du Coeur plan - the brainchild of businessman Pierre

Botton who was jailed for 20 months for misusing company funds – would see 120 first offenders working in the Saint-Julien-sur-Suran prison block and in a shop that would be open to

outsiders. The main aim of the new prison is to stop prisoners from re-offending. France’s prison population has reached a record 66,445 and studies show that 65% of offenders reoffend

within five years of leaving jail.