Thompsons Solicitors, the UK’s most experienced personal injury law firm, has warned that to deny prisoners the right to claim compensation for personal injury would be a return to the dark days of the Dickensian workplace.

Tom Jones, Thompsons’ head of policy and public affairs, said: “The story doing the rounds today that prisoners’ claims are part of the ‘compensation culture’ is astonishing. There is no ‘compensation culture’ gripping this country. The statistics clearly show that if anything claims are falling.

“It is frankly appalling that personal injury and clinical negligence claims by prisoners, where there is genuine injury and negligence, is being whipped up as ‘compensation culture’.

“Whatever crime they may have committed, prisoners are human beings with certain rights. Unless society is going to decide that certain groups are unable to claim compensation and that prisoners are ineligible for compensation, then why should they not claim compensation for pain and injury caused by someone else's negligence?