While Keir Starmer faces accusations of "appeasing" big tech firms over online safety, the government has been quietly presiding over an explosion of violence in Britain's prisons that makes social media harm look tame by comparison.

Serious prisoner-on-prisoner assaults nearly doubled in 2023, jumping from 12.8 per 1,000 inmates to 24.4 per 1,000. That's a 91% surge in violence in just one year. (Source: Ministry of Justice, Safety in Custody -- safety-in-custody-assaults-dec-23 -- 3_1_Summary_assault_statistics)

Put another way: if you're one of Britain's 80,000 prisoners today, you're nearly twice as likely to be seriously assaulted by another inmate as you were last year. We're talking about attacks severe enough to require medical treatment, cause unconsciousness, or involve weapons.

This isn't just another statistic about prison conditions. It represents thousands of actual assaults happening behind bars while politicians focus their energy on regulating tweets and TikTok videos. The contrast is stark: online safety campaigners criticise ministers for being too soft on tech companies, but where's the outrage about the government's failure to protect people already in state custody?

The timing couldn't be more telling. As ministers negotiate with Silicon Valley executives about content moderation, Britain's prisons have become significantly more dangerous places. Every week, roughly 37 serious assaults now occur in our prison system, compared to just 20 per week in 2022.

This surge in violence comes as the prison population continues to strain capacity and staffing levels remain inadequate. When prisoners can't be properly supervised or separated, violence becomes inevitable. The people being assaulted aren't just statistics; they're individuals serving their sentences who shouldn't have to fear for their physical safety every day.

The government talks tough on crime and punishment, but it's failing at the most basic duty: keeping people in its custody safe from each other. While Starmer faces criticism for his approach to big tech regulation, the more pressing question is why prison violence has been allowed to spiral out of control on his watch.

Social media might harm young people's mental health, but prison violence causes immediate, physical harm to thousands of people who have no choice but to endure it. Which crisis deserves more urgent government attention?