Conservative plans to build prisons to hold 20,000 more offenders will be delivered through private finance deals, the party has said.

Michael Howard, Tory leader, unveiled proposals yesterday to end the early release scheme for prisoners and require judges to set minimum and maximum sentences for offenders.
At a typical cost of £30,000 a year for a private sector prison place, the increase in prisoners would add £514m a year to the prisons budget by 2012.