HUNDREDS of prison officers will be ferried around England and Wales this Christmas, trying to plug the gaps left by severe staff shortages at major expense to the taxpayer.

Campaign group the Howard League for Penal Reform released facts from an official dossier yesterday detailing the desperate manoeuvrings to prop up overstretched facilities.

It echoes previous warnings from the Prison Officers Association (POA) that funding cuts and plummeting morale in the service have seen staff leave in their droves and created a dire shortage.