A national black students’ conference has called for the abolition of prisons, claiming that they are sexist and racist and that reoffending rates are unacceptably high.

The stance raises further questions about Malia Bouattia, the incoming president of the National Union of Students, who for the past two years has been its black students’ officer.

The black students’ campaign determines its own policy, but Ms Bouattia, who takes over as NUS president on July 1, is closely involved and made the opening speech at the conference in Bradford on Saturday.

Students passed a motion entitled “Prisons are obsolete! Abolish them now” that urged a direct action campaign to end “the prison-industrial complex”.

It cited figures on deaths in custody and the high proportion of African,