An inmate is suing the Prison Service after injuring himself by jumping off a roof in a failed escape bid. The 31-year-old convicted robber broke bones in both feet when he jumped 30ft from the roof three years ago.

He is now seeking compensation amid claims he did not receive sufficient treatment because he was moved from prison to prison. The man’s action is costing the taxpayer thousands of pounds in legal costs after hiring a firm of solicitors and a barrister to fight his case.

Conservative MP David Davies blasted the publicly-funded damages claim. He said: “Yet another bunch of injury lawyers will have made a mint pursuing this spurious claim on behalf of a criminal. The fact that such a ludicrous case has come to court just goes to show how little common sense there is in this country when it comes to dealing with justice. “It’s ridiculous that a prisoner trying to escape can make such a claim against the prison authorities.”

The prisoner was injured leaping from the roof of Usk prison in South Wales, in an attempt to escape. Prison staff found him collapsed on a road outside the jail and he needed surgical plates inserted into both heels. He was left with osteoarthritis and cannot walk unaided. He claims he has gone through 20 months of extreme pain waiting to have one of the plates removed.