A planned 38% increase in the minimum weekly pay for prisoners in England and Wales has been abandoned the day before it was due to come into force.
The rise from a minimum £4 to £5.50 for work inside jails would have been the first increase since the mid-1990s.
Under Prison Service rules, inmates who take part in "purposeful activity" are paid a small amount as part of measures to encourage rehabilitation.
Payments are made for activities including prison work or attending classes or schemes designed to tackle offending.
The minimum pay for prisoners who are ill or deemed unemployed because there is not anything for them to do was also set to go up, from £2.50 to £4, a rise of 60%.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7374276.stmPay prisoners? Make them pay!!