Andy Burnham to review prisoner early release scheme after backlash over PC Harper’s killers

Andy Burnham will review the government’s early release plan following outcry over the possible early release of two of police officer Andrew Harper’s killers.

The Prime Minister said he wanted to make sure “everything is reviewed” before the policy, introduced under Sir Keir Starmer, goes ahead as planned in September.

It comes after the mother of PC Harper, 28, who was fatally injured while responding to a quad bike theft in Berkshire in August 2019, said it was an “insult” that two of her son’s killers were eligible for early release from prison.

PC Harper died after he was caught in a strap tied to the back of a car and dragged along a country road as three young suspects fled the scene of a burglary. Henry Long, then 19, was sentenced to 16 years in prison, while Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, both 18, were sentenced to 13 years in prison after being tried for manslaughter in 2020.

Earlier on Wednesday, transport minister Heidi Alexander confirmed that Long, the car’s driver, would not be automatically eligible for release, but his two passengers could be eligible to walk out when they are halfway through their sentences.

Speaking to reporters in Bath, the prime minister said: “All I can say is that I will review this entire policy. There is no denying the pressure on prisons.”

“As a country we did not invest in prison land when we should have done so a decade ago when it was clear there would be pressure and this has created a situation that is now unacceptable.

“However, I want to reassure myself that everything has been examined before this policy is implemented and I can assure you that I will review every aspect of this matter with the justice minister.

“I can’t say I won’t change the policy completely, but I will look into it in detail before going any further.”

Under the new Criminal Code, which comes into force in September, an estimated 6,000 offenders will be eligible for early release for good behavior to serve the remainder of their sentences on license in the community, including a major expansion of electronic tagging.

It comes after more than 43,000 criminals were automatically released after serving 40 per cent of their sentences in 2025 in a bid to prevent a “collapse of the justice system” as prisons run out of cells.

But on Tuesday the prime minister’s spokesman said a number of key policies introduced by Sir Keir Starmer would be reviewed, including a plan for the early release of prisoners, a plan to cancel some jury trials and a deal to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.

“The Prime Minister has been on the doorstep of Number 10 for just over 24 hours and is still making appointments to his government, so we will update on policy areas in due course,” his spokesman said.

The Department of Justice has confirmed that Cole and Bowers may be eligible for release from prison when they are halfway through their sentences.

Addressing the PC Harper family’s concerns about their early release, the new prime minister said: “I feel sorry for the family, it is a terrible crime that has been committed. The main perpetrator will not be subject to any early release. Of course others involved have potentially been identified.”

“But I have spoken to the new justice minister. They will review the policy together and make further statements in due course.”

Prison overcrowding has forced successive governments to impose emergency releases, with the Conservative administration’s End of Custody Supervised License scheme launched in 2023 allowing more than 10,000 prisoners to be released 18 to 70 days early.

This was followed by Labour’s SDS40 scheme, which will see 56,323 offenders released after serving 40 per cent of their prison sentence between September 2024 and December 2025.

Then-justice minister Shabana Mahmood said reforms to the Criminal Code came after prisons ran out of space last year, risking a “complete collapse of law and order” within a few months that would leave police unable to make arrests and courts unable to send criminals into custody.

It builds on a package of measures set out in David Gauke’s Independent Sentencing Review, which calls on the government to take “decisive action” to ensure they are never again forced to rely on emergency release of prisoners.

According to the new law, those with standard specific sentences will only be able to serve one-third of their detention period if they behave in prison. One-third of these people will be under supervision in the community, the last third will be on license and can be recalled if they re-offend.

Serious criminals sentenced to four years or more, including some sex offenders, may be released under supervised release halfway through.

However, under the earned progress model, inmates who break prison rules can be given extra detention time.

The measures have been generally welcomed by prison reform experts, who say average sentence lengths have roughly doubled in the past 50 years. But there are also calls to fund excessively long-term probation services to cope with the increase in the number of offenders in society.

Earlier on Wednesday, defense secretary Wes Streeting was forced to apologize after he was caught on camera joking about the plan.

In a video published by the Guido Fawkes news website, new justice minister Alex Norris is seen walking towards Mr Streeting and Home Affairs Minister Shabana Mahmood.

Mr Streeting is heard calling Mr Norris “the enemy now”, adding: “He wants to let them all out”.

He later apologized, saying: “I hope everyone can see that there was no ill intent behind this rebuke of the new justice secretary – it was a reference to an old May/Clarke joke.

“But I recognize these are very serious matters and I apologize for any offense this moment of levity has unintentionally caused.”

Asked whether it was acceptable for cabinet members to joke about early release, Mr Burnham said: “No, it is not, and that has certainly been accepted and an apology has been made.”