Drug-addicted criminals will be spared jail - Telegraph

Drug-addicted criminals will be spared jail - Telegraph: "Addicts and people with mental health problems could be “diverted” by the police and courts away from prison and referred for treatment instead, a minister has said.
Officials across Whitehall are working on plans for “alternative” forms of “treatment-based accommodation” for offenders who are mentally ill or addicted to drugs, the Ministry of Justice said.
The plans are likely to prove controversial among Conservative MPs, who think Mr Clarke is trying to take the Coalition away from the party’s traditional policies of imposing tough punishments on offenders."