Labour has ordered the early release of more than 1,000 prisoners today amid growing panic that jails would run out of space altogether.
Here’s what you need to know, why it’s sparking a backlash and what might happen next.
Why is the government releasing prisoners?
It’s an attempt to ease the overcrowding crisis in jails, which has been brewing for some time.
This is not just a concern for the justice system. A lack of capacity also worsens the conditions within the jails, increasing self-harm and violence among the prisoners, and making it harder for them to be rehabilitated.
In August, after the far-right riots triggered a wave of arrests, British prisons became so crowded there were reportedly only 83 spaces left in the men’s estate.
Official figures from the Ministry of Justice showed there were 88,521 people locked up last week, the highest number since records began in 2011.
It means only 1.2% of prison spaces are available – that’s just 1,098.
The crisis is thought to have been impacted by longer sentences handed out by judges, with the average prison sentence more than 25% longer in 2023 than in 2012.
There’s also a growing number of prisoners waiting for their trials to start or for sentencing.
What does the PM say?
PM Keir Starmer said he was “truly shocked” by the prison system when he took over.
He claimed this was the Conservatives’ fault, because they chose not to build enough prisons – meaning he was “forced” into this decision early on in his premiership.
“It was very difficult during the disorder [in August], I won’t hide from that. Every day we were having to look at how many prison places we had in order to arrest people who needed to be arrested,” he said.
Starmer was aware of the problem before he came into office.
He told broadcasters that the government would have to make this unpopular move just before voters hit the ballot box in July, and officials were already making plans for such a move when the Tories were in power.
In fact, according to The Times, ex-PM Rishi Sunak ignored a letter from the UK’s most senior police officers, calling for an early release measure at the end of June – just days before the election.
How many prisoners are being let out early?
Around 1,750 prisoners are being released after serving a shorter sentence.
That’s on top of the 1,000 who are typically released in a week.
Which criminals have been chosen to serve shorter sentences?
Prisoners serving less than five years will be released after completing 40% of their sentence – instead of the usual 50% – and will be monitored with ankle tagging, face curfews and exclusion zones.
The government hopes this will free up 5,500 beds.
Criminals convicted of sex offences, terrorism, domestic abuse or violent offences have not been considered for early release.
According to business secretary Jonathan Reynolds, prisoners’ victims have been informed of their release in relevant cases.
But shadow work and pensions secretary Mel Stride, who is also running to be Tory leader, has criticised the scheme.
He said: “We’re not getting satisfactory answers as to whether appropriate accommodation is actually being provided for those prisoners that are being released.”
The Tories also claim that the new government has “badly managed” this release.
What are the safety fears around this?
The chief inspector of prisons, Charlie Taylor, warned it is “inevitable” some will commit more crimes once they are released.
He also warned that there could be a spike in homelessness and people returning “into the cycle of crime, drug use… or worse still getting involved in further offences”.
Baroness Newlove, the government’s victim’s commissioner, said it was “regrettable” that hundreds of victims had not been made aware their perpetrators were being released.
But Starmer told the BBC there are risk assessments in place, and high risk prisoners will not be released “very much bearing in mind the victims in this”.
The scheme will also have a knock-on effect for the Probation Service, as offenders have to be supervised by probation officers.
The chief inspector of probation, Martin Jones, said the service is already “significantly overstretched” with a lack of officers, due to poor pay, a lack of retention and structural issues.
He claimed “around about a third” will reoffend.
And, it is a temporary fix – prison population is expected to rise by approximately 19,000, according to the Ministry of Justice, while capacity is expected to increase by far less, just 9,000.
What might the government do long-term to fix this issue?
There were reports earlier this month that Labour were looking to pair up with Estonia and pay to house some prisoners in the eastern European country.
However, Downing Street has not confirmed any such deal.
A spokesperson told reporters: “I would point out that this was the policy of the former government but this government has made no such plans or announcements with regards to Estonia.”
They added that the government will only look at options which are “practical and deliver value for money for the taxpayer”.
