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Idiotic newspaper writes story about Wii and prison

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Image credit: VG247

Right wing Tory hate-rag, The Daily Telegraph, has posted this ridiculous story about "foreign criminals", "serving time for offences including rape and murder", enjoying "computer games, five-aside football with cash prizes and televisions in every cell".

"Some detainees have Nintendo Wiis. If the consoles go wrong staff are sent to the nearest Argos to pick up a replacement," said a "source" at Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre in Berkshire. "The music room has guitars and a drum kit. And there are £5 prizes for the winners of five-a-side tournaments."

All this comes from bastion of journalistic integrity The Sun, in case you were wondering.

After wanking on for 11 paragraphs, The Telegraph bravely includes a quotable soure from the Home Office, none other than the Immigration Minister himself, Liam Byrne.

"We won’t hesitate to detain people for brief periods of time before they fly home," he said. "I have visited lots of detention centres; luxurious they are not. We are always under pressure from HM Government inspectors to provide improved constructive activities."

The story finishes off with, "A Home Office spokesman said there were only small televisions in each cell and one plasma screen in the communal area."

So, in short, a tabloid writes something, the officials in charge of the thing you were writing about tell you it's bollocks, and you hide the truth under a ton of s**t. Well done, The Daily Telegraph. "Quality" to the bone.

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Patrick Garratt avatar
Patrick Garratt is a games media legend - and not just by reputation. He was named as such in the UK's 'Games Media Awards', the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award. After garnering experience on countless gaming magazines, he joined Eurogamer and later split from that brand to create VG247, putting the site on the map with fast, 24-hour a day coverage, and assembling the site's earliest editorial teams. He retired from VG247, and the games industry, in 2017.
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