An anonymous group has claimed responsibility for sabotaging the foundations of the new North Wales “mega prison”, HMP Berwyn, which has rendered the prison unsafe for prisoners and prison staff.

We call for an immediate suspension of the prison’s opening, currently planned for Monday February 27th, until the necessary structural investigations have been completed.

Sign the petition here: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/186833/sponsors/eqAslJNLzBoDAYFCEcE

The revelations that two of the housing blocks are structurally unsound raises questions about the safety of the prison, before a single prisoner is held there. Given this information, it would be morally and politically irresponsible for the prison to open as planned.

We demand an extensive investigation into the structural safety of the whole prison — it has only been announced that two blocks have been sabotaged, but in the interests of health and safety it would be essential for structures to be thoroughly checked, as the specific sites have not been named and it is possible that other part of the prison building site could also have been sabotaged.

James Finch, a teacher from nearby Bradley, said:

“This prison has faced huge local opposition from the start: building the biggest jail in Europe won’t help anyone, and it’s taking hundreds of millions of pounds away from vital social services which might actually make our communities safer and healthier. It’s outrageous enough that the Ministry of Justice is ignoring prisoner welfare by commissioning this dangerous, un-tested type of jail in the first place; it would be beyond despicable to send people into it when the walls would be liable to collapse on them at any moment.”

Signed by Community Action on Prison Expansion and No Prisons Manchester.