General
Top civil servant: prison inmates sent to work during the day more often to address cell shortage
Wim Saris, director-general of the Dienst Justitiële Inrichtingen, warns that the Netherlands faces a severe prison cell shortage, leaving thousands of convicted individuals without placement. Despite receiving only 150 million euros of the requested 900 million, the government’s action plan allows some inmates to work outside prisons during the day and reopens facilities like the Almere prison. Saris argues these measures are insufficient to resolve the structural crisis, predicting a shortfall of 1,700 places rather than the projected 800 by 2031 due to longer sentences and staff shortages.
Ozetta summarises; the reporting is the newsroom's