Nana Akua slams ‘reckless’ early release scheme
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Labour faces accusations of a “cover-up” over a refusal to publish figures showing the number of offenders released early from prison, as another 650 inmates are due to walk free today under the Government’s expanding scheme.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has confirmed it will not disclose the exact number of prisoners released under the new rolling early release scheme, which could see an estimated 50,000 offenders a year leave jail before completing the custodial portion of their sentences.
Instead, the figures will be folded into existing statistics, making it impossible to establish the full number benefiting from the changes.
Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy accused the Government of hiding the scale of the programme, demanding ministers explain why the data would not be made public.
“This looks like a cover-up by Labour to hide the true scale of their latest disastrous early release scheme,” he told the Daily Mail.
The latest releases today mark the second phase of the programme which began on October 1, when around 700 prisoners serving sentences of less than 19 months were released early across England and Wales.
From today, the scheme extends to offenders serving sentences of up to two-and-a-half years, who can now leave prison after serving a third of their sentence, rather than half.
The changes will be introduced in stages over the coming months, with the final expansion in June next year bringing prisoners serving sentences of 12 years or more into the scheme.
Certain categories, including life-sentenced prisoners and those serving extended sentences, remain excluded.
The new programme builds on an earlier Labour early-release initiative launched in September 2024, under which more than 70,000 offenders have reportedly been released so far.
Critics have raised concerns about the risk to public safety, citing cases in which offenders allegedly returned to crime shortly after leaving custody.
Michael Bogle, 38, a prolific offender and registered sex offender, was photographed leaving HMP Wandsworth on the first day of the latest release wave. He later admitted 11 shoplifting offences and was jailed again within days.
Greater Manchester Police has also reported eight men were arrested within days of being released early, in connection with alleged offences including robbery, domestic violence and drug-related crime.
That said, there remains no overall published figure showing how many prisoners released under the schemes have gone on to commit further offences.
David Spencer, head of crime and justice at think-tank Policy Exchange, said the Government should disclose how many prisoners were being released, alongside their offending histories and any crimes committed after release.
“If the Government won’t give us these sorts of details on their early release scheme it smacks of a cover-up happening in plain sight,” he said.
The programme is also placing pressure on probation services, whose staff are responsible for monitoring offenders in the community.
Union Napo is preparing for a ballot that could lead to strike action over pay and workloads, with probation officers offered a 5 per cent pay rise, which is below the 12 per cent sought by the union.
The MoJ says its offer is fair and points to a £700 million investment in probation, including plans to recruit 1,300 additional officers and introduce AI tools to reduce workloads.
An department spokesman said: “We inherited a prison system on the brink of collapse. If we had failed to act the police would have been forced to halt arrests, putting communities at untold risk.
“Our changes are part of a long-term overhaul of sentencing, ending the crisis in our prisons and keeping dangerous offenders behind bars. The Sentencing Act follows an independent review and was fully scrutinised by Parliament.”
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