PRISON chiefs have denied reports that they are planning to close Dartmoor Prison and build a new jail in East Cornwall.

It follows a BBC claim that it had seen a leaked confidential Government report saying the 200-year-old prison could be closed as part of modernisation plans.

The leaked 'Vision for Estate' report is said to raise the possibility of Exeter Prison, which also dates from the Victorian era, being closed and a new jail built in East Cornwall.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) says modernisation is urgently required and the 'permanent closure of old and inefficient capacity' is 'at the heart of the strategy', said the BBC, and it was working to provide 'a fit-for-purpose prison estate'.

The MoJ said in a statement that the report seen by the BBC was a draft document which did not represent the Government's position.

'We have no plans to build a prison in Cornwall,' said the MoJ. 'No decision has been made about prison closures.

'We will look in detail over the coming months at the sentencing frameworks for adult and young offenders, as well as the full range of penalties available in the criminal justice system.

'This means introducing more effective policies, as well as overhauling the system of rehabilitation to reduce reoffending.'

The MoJ continued it would take time to get it right and there would be wide consultations before bringing forward coherent plans for reform.

'Long-term decisions on prison capacity programmes will be taken in the light of these policy developments,' it said.

'We will ensure that we meet prison capacity requirements more efficiently to improve value for money for the taxpayer and contribute savings to help reduce the budget deficit.'

The Prison Reform Trust said earlier in July that Dartmoor Prison should eventually be closed because it was too isolated and too old. It was responding to a critical report by the Chief Inspector of Prisons.

Dartmoor Prison governor Tony Corcoran told the Times following the report that he had heard of no plans to close the prison and he and his team were working hard to implement the recommendations made by the chief inspector of prisons Dame Anne Owers.

'The report recognised that the new management team started from an even lower base than in 2008,' he said. 'It's like stopping a large tanker on a sixpence, it takes an awful long time to get it back on track.'

He said the Independent Monitoring Board had reported that there was a 'sea-change' at the prison.

He added that there were many good things about the prison which had been recognised, including the work of the resettlement unit and the significant reduction in positive drug tests among prisoners.