by Lamiat Sabin
in Southport

PRISON officers should be made more aware of the “insidious” TTIP agreement before it is too late, the union warned yesterday.

The secretive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership — that is currently under quiet negotiation between the European Union and the United States — could put the public sector and jobs in serious jeopardy.

Big business in the US could be allowed to sue the government if the latter implements policies that could pose a threat to profits.

Attempts to bring national assets, such as the NHS and schools, back into state hands — if they were to be “locked” in private investment — could also result in the same fate after costly investor-state dispute settlements (ISDS).

International privateers have used ISDS in the past to endanger public services and policy, and the effects are “chilling,” Prison Officers Association general secretary Steve Gillan said at the union’s annual meeting.

Brian Clarke, a delegate from HMP Birmingham — that is now run by private security corporation G4S — also called for action.

He said: “Please campaign, please oppose, please object to the insidious TTIP.”

HMP Bullingdon’s Steve Wrighton told representatives from more than 150 prisons: “I urge you all to read about TTIP. It is really damaging.

“If it comes across the Atlantic to us, then our private companies will tell us we are ‘restricting’ their right to make money. They will sue everybody that they can.

“It will come our way if we are not careful.”

Unlike the NHS and education, the prison service has explicit exemption from TTIP.

But the money-hungry Conservative government has stated in its manifesto that it wanted to make no allowances for prisons.

“We have to be absolutely clear that we want an exemption from TTIP,” Mr Gillan added.