U.K. prisons pushed to capacity LONDON, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- The United Kingdom's prisons are at 98.1 percent capacity after last summer's riots led to a steep increase in the number of people behind bars, officials said. Government figures released Friday show the total number of inmates in prisons in England and Wales was 87,668, just under the maximum capacity of 89,399, The Daily Telegraph reported. The Justice Ministry said two new prisons due to open this year should ease the strain on existing facilities. It also said a contingency plan of holding overflow prisoners in cells at police stations and courts has not yet had to be activated. "Managing the increase in the population is challenging but we have been continually developing contingencies to manage the additional population," a prison service spokesperson said. We currently have enough prison places for those being remanded and sentenced to custody. Capacity will continue to increase throughout 2012 with the opening of two new prisons from March," the spokesperson said.