18-rated films banned from jails

Prisoners are to be banned from watching violent and sexually explicit films as part of a clampdown on perks behind bars brought into force today.

Certificate 18-rated movies, such as Hostel and Reservoir Dogs, will no longer be screened at jails in England and Wales under changes to the Incentives and Earned Privileges (IEP) scheme.

The changes, unveiled in April, will also see subscription channels removed from private prisons, and inmates will have to earn the right to wear their own clothes.

The IEP scheme allows prisoners to work up specific levels of privileges through good behaviour and, in turn, lose the perks if they fail to meet acceptable standards.

Last month, the Ministry of Justice also announced changes that will see prisoners pay compensation for damage caused.

Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said: " For too long the public has seen prisoners spending their days languishing in their cells watching TV, using illegal mobile phones to taunt their victims on Facebook or boasting about their supposedly easy life in prisons.

"This is not right and it cannot continue.

"The changes we have made to the incentive scheme are not just about taking TVs away from prisoners, they are about making them work towards their rehabilitation."

A full review of the policy - the first for 10 years - was ordered by minsters last year and was completed in April.