I'm concerned prisoners high on drugs could be carried out of HMP Manchester by drone

Criminal gangs are increasingly using drones to smuggle drugs and weapons into UK prisons, with HMP Manchester among the most affected, according to Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor.

In his latest annual report, Taylor warned that drones are being used to drop packages weighing up to 10 kilograms directly into prison yards or even outside individual cells using precision tools like location apps.

HMP Manchester, a high-security prison, has been specifically highlighted as a serious target for such activity. Taylor previously described drone drops at this prison as a “threat to national security,” and he renewed his call for urgent Government action to counter the growing technological threat.

Inside HMP Manchester and similar facilities, the influx of drugs is fuelling violence and undermining rehabilitation efforts. Many inmates spend up to 22 hours a day in their cells, often “high on drugs, watching daytime TV,” according to Taylor.

The watchdog chief said: “There is a level of risk that’s posed by drones that I think is different from what we’ve seen in the past, and both with stuff coming in and ultimately the potential for something even more serious to happen.

“What I’d like to see is that the prison service really get a grip of this issue and and we’d like to see the Government, security services coming together, using technology, using intelligence, so that this risk doesn’t materialise.”

Four men were arrested after a drone, drugs and contraband were seized outside HMP Manchester | Google

The report described a “menu of drugs” available within the prison, with 39% of surveyed inmates saying drugs were easy to obtain. The situation is compounded by inexperienced staff, overcrowding, and inadequate mental health services, all contributing to high rates of violence.

In some cases, drones have been suspected of delivering dangerous weapons — including a zombie knife — into prisons. Although this particular discovery occurred after the report’s review period, it highlights the escalating risks.

On weapons, Mr Taylor said: “I have been in prisons where they showed inspectors some pretty frightening-looking knives that have got in, which they suspect have got in as a result of drones. “This is a threat that needs to be taken seriously at the highest levels of Government.

“Only when drugs are kept out, and prisoners are involved in genuinely purposeful activity that will help them to get work and resettle successfully on release, can we expect to see prisons rehabilitate rather than just contain the men and women they hold.”

Drones dropping drugs and weapons to dangerous prisoners being held in high-security jails are a "threat to national security", a watchdog has warned | Niall Carson/PA Wire

The Government has pledged to build 14,000 new prison places by 2031 and has approved the use of body armour for officers in high-security units following violent incidents, such as the attack by Manchester Arena bomb plotter Hashem Abedi at HMP Frankland.

Taylor concluded that without urgent reform, prisons like HMP Manchester will continue to face “seemingly uncontrollable levels of criminality” that make rehabilitation virtually impossible.

Prisons minister Lord James Timpson said: “This report shows the scale of the crisis we inherited and the unacceptable pressures faced by our hardworking staff – with prisons dangerously full, rife with drugs and violence.

“We’re also investing £40 million to bolster security, alongside stepping up co-operation with police to combat drones and stop the contraband which fuels violence behind bars”.