Kyle Clifford to become Britain’s most expensive prisoner costing “millions and millions”

Crossbow killer Kyle Clifford will become Britain’s most expensive ever prisoner costing taxpayers “millions and millions of pounds” for his whole life incarceration. The cowardly mass murderer has been left paralysed from the waist down after shooting himself with a crossbow bolt moments before police arrested him for the slaying of ex-girlfriend Louise Hunt, 25, her sister Hannah, 28, and mother Carol, 61.

Having been convicted of triple murder and rape the “misogynistic monster” was told he will die behind bars for his horrific rampage on the family of racing commentator John Hunt’s home in Bushey, Hertfordshire, last July. But because of his complex health needs the triple killer is entitled to an extensive health and social care programme in his cell that will send the cost to the public purse soaring. The average cost of keeping a convict in jail is currently £55,000 – meaning at current prices it would cost £3.3million to keep 26-year-old Clifford behind bars for the next 60 years.

But his complex needs mean he will need daily care provision ascertained by an assorted medical team comprising doctors, nurses, occupational therapists and physiotherapists that would send the costs soaring.

In addition care staff could be needed to assist him with many basic activities such as getting out of bed, washing and potentially even using the toilet.

One prison source said they said the basic cost could be “at least doubled” for keeping someone with complex physical needs.

The killer is currently caged at London’s HMP Belmarsh in a cell specially-adapted for a wheelchair user. The prison upgraded its facilities for assisting disable prisoners after being forced to compensate one inmate over £200,000 for failing to provide adequate care.

However, this is unlikely to be his final destination, with one prison expert predicting that he could be moved to a Category B prison that has expertise in holding older and disabled prisoners.

Legislation means that all public bodies including prisons have a legal obligation to make any necessary reasonable adjustments to facilities to remove obstacles that place disabled people at a particular disadvantage when accessing services compared to non-disabled people.

A senior NHS physiotherapist told the Daily Express that means the health service is “obliged” to provide an ongoing health provision to even the most evil of criminals such as Clifford.

They said: “The initial assessment for his needs would be to ascertain what equipment he needs and then that would have to be provided. He is a young man so he will need a number of specially-adapted wheelchairs throughout his lifetime – but that’s just the starting point. He will also need a specialised profile bed that moves and a pressure relieving mattress.

“One of the main risks for a paraplegic patient is the risk of bed sores which can develop in just a couple of hours without movement and can be fatal. If a patient is resistant to treatment then this would have to be done manually by a therapist. There is also skin and feet care, issues with the body’s core muscles and potentially bowl and bladder care if the patient is unable to go to the toilet by themselves.

“As physiotherapists our main role with a paralysed patient is rehabilitation to enable them to return to some form of life, but obviously that is very different outlook for someone like Clifford who will be in jail for the rest of his days. A lot will be down to what goals he wants to achieve but it’s a bitter irony the less he does the more care he will need.”

Former prison guard and governor Ian Acheson said: “I cannot think of another prisoner in the UK who is like Kyle Clifford.

“There are prisoners who have attempted suicide and become paralysed whilst in jail, but he made himself paralysed before being put behind bars and the service has a whole life sentence to manage him through.

Mr Acheson said it was impossible to estimate the full cost of Clifford’s incarceration but said his young age and injuries make a “hugely unique – and costly – situation.”

He added: “He’s going to have complex needs and will need a level of care that most prisons are simply not organised to provide. The combination of the severity of his crimes and the extent of his disability will make it very challenging. They will need to find a place in a relatively high security prison because even though he is wheelchair-bound escape must be made impossible. If he did somehow escape then there would be severe damage done to the reputation of the justice system.

“But considerations also need to be taken that he will be a target for other prisoners due to the nature of his crimes.

“The medical care inside prisons is now all contracted out to the NHS so there won’t be a direct cost to the prison in respect of clinical care but of course there’s lots of others aspects that will be down to the prison management. I’ve simply no idea how that will all be managed, for example he will need somebody to push him around, somebody to help him with personal care and prison officers are not trained to do that. There will also be significant additional costs to having his cell adapted and special arrangements put in place for things such as fire evacuation.

Mr Acheson added that if able-bodied Clifford would certainly be housed in a Category A jail but believes his disability means he will be in a B or C prison.

He added: “It’s unlikely he will stay at HMP Belmarsh, so he will be observed and categorised due to his risk management. His crime certainly warrant being in a Cat A, but in reality that means he’d be taking up a space needed for somebody who is now far more dangerous.”

It is unknown how many disable prisoners are currently housed inside the nation’s 141 jails.

A request for parliament to disclose the numbers of disable prisoners in England and Wales prisons was declined in 2022 because the “self-declared information on disability is held on national databases, however, it is of mixed quality and not suitable for publication.”

Prison and Probation Services in England and Wales must adhere to the Equality Act 2010, including the duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled persons. They say Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) must work to respond to the individual needs of all prisoners and deliver a consistent approach to all prisoners with care and support needs.

The National Disability Strategy published by the Government in July 2021 sets out a number of commitments for the Ministry of Justice, including steps being taken to ensure that prisoners are able to rehabilitate and that reasonable adjustments are provided.

All prisoners’ needs are assessed when they enter custody and arrangements are made locally to ensure they are met. In the case of disabled people arrangements may include Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs), access to necessary services or equipment to aid their wellbeing, social interactions and rehabilitation.

Under the Social Care Act 2014 the relevant local authority has a duty to prisoners based in prisons or Approved Premises (APs) in their area to coordinate with the prison, probation and healthcare to ensure community care assessments are conducted to assess people’s needs.

It states that prisoners should “have equivalent access… as in the community, and are supported to live with dignity and as much independence as possible”.

Prisoners are also eligible for social care and support if their illness or impairment means they are unable to achieve two or more stated outcomes resulting in a significant impact on their wellbeing.

These outcomes include difficulties managing and maintaining nutrition, maintaining personal hygiene, help going to the toilet, help clothing, mobility around the prison/ cell and assistance in developing and maintaining family relationships.

Clifford may also be entitled to help in performing work, training, education or even volunteering.

The costs to the taxpayer of Clifford’s rampage has already run into millions due to the extensive 20-hour armed manhunt required after his deadly assault, his specialised intensive care treatment in hospital where the average daily critical care cost tops £2,000 and the guards required to ensure he was not helped escape from hospital.

Hertfordshire Chief Superintendent Jon Simpson said: “The manhunt was not the end of our operation. Clifford required 24/7 police guard throughout his extensive hospital stay. Although he is now paralysed from the chest down, we could not simply leave a triple murder suspect to recuperate unsupervised. This was the longest daily demand on policing in Hertfordshire in recent history.”

His cowardly refusal to deny rape also necessitated a trial costing the public purse an estimated to have cost £20,000.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson declined to comment on Clifford’s prison arrangements.