12 March 2024 , 14:38
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The UK's jail cells are packed to the rafters, with the government set to release certain prisoners early in an effort to free up much-needed space.
New emergency measures mean inmates such as burglars and shoplifters will be among those freed ahead of time, with more serious criminals such as sex offenders, convicted terrorists, category A prisoners and all violent offenders serving four or more years being excluded.
The number of people in prison has ballooned in recent decades due to tougher sentences and court backlogs. Justice Secretary Alex Chalk assured that the early release scheme, officially called the End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme, 'will only be for certain low level offenders' and that prisoners will be tagged where necessary.
According to the most recent official statistics, there are around 2,000 spaces left in UK prisons, with the population at 86,859. The useable operational capacity of the estate is 88,987. Last autumn, Mr Chalk said 'less serious offenders' could be released up to 18 days early; but this has now been extended to between 35 and 60 days.
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In a written ministerial statement published on Monday night, Mr Chalk said: "We will also extend the existing end of custody supervised licence measure to around 35-60 days. We will enable this to happen, for a time limited period, and work with the police, prisons and probation leaders to make further adjustments as required.
"This will only be for certain low level offenders. Where necessary, electronic monitoring will be applied, enhancing public protection. Ministers will continue to keep use of this measure under review."
Shadow Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the public will be 'rightly alarmed' by the announcement. “Successive Conservative governments have failed to build enough prison places," she said. "This has led to them granting early release to violent criminals, domestic abusers, and burglars. It’s a crisis of the Tories’ own making and it puts the public at risk."
She continued: "Under the cover of darkness, they’ve snuck out that they are extending the scheme from 18 days early release up to an unprecedented 60 days. The public will be rightly alarmed.
“After 14 years of the Tories, prison violence is still rocketing, staff are leaving in droves, and high reoffending rates mean prison leavers often end up back in custody. With population projections showing even more pressure in years to come, it paints a stark picture of how the Tories have lost control of jails. A Labour government would get these new prisons built to ease the capacity crisis. And we’ll make prisons work as part of our mission make Britain's streets safe.”
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