IN RECENT years there has been a move towards rehabilitation of offenders.

But most people still believe punishment should be paramount.

That is why it will be a frustration to many today to hear of a Blackburn prisoner being investigated over a diary of prison life on social networking site Facebook.

Brendan Rawsthorn is serving an indefinite sentence after starting a blaze in Darwen which caused £200,000 damage.

The webpage diary brags about spending his days with his feet up, playing computer games, enjoying lie-ins and getting drunk on home brew.

Prison chiefs are investigating how the culprit had apparently been able to update Facebook from his cell.

Clearly it is very concerning that prisoners could potentially be using smuggled mobile phones in jail.

Prison chiefs say their checking practices are ‘robust’, but this case would appear to cast serious doubt on that.

And, while it could be an act of bravado, the diary would also seem to indicate that prison life is anything but tough.

For justice to be seen to be done, prison needs to be a punishment.

So ministers need to make cracking down on these sort of practices a priority to reassure the public.