Burnham pauses early prison release scheme
Andy Burnham has announced that he is pausing a plan to see the early release of thousands of prisoners in England and Wales.
This follows criticism of the plan from survivors and victims’ families; among them was PC’s widow, Andrew Harper; He himself described the possibility of the murderers’ early release as “pathetic”.
The Criminal Code, which is expected to come into force in September, would allow some criminals to be released in different stages in order to alleviate overcrowding in prisons.
New Justice Minister Alex Norris said the pause was intended to “give certainty to victims and survivors” and that the government wanted to ensure “this policy is implemented correctly”.
He added that information provided to survivors and victims’ families as part of the early release process will also be reviewed.
Burnham previously said: “No prisoners will be allowed to be released under this policy until we have conducted an urgent review and done everything we can to minimize the risk to the public.”
He added: “Where changes are needed we will not hesitate to make them.”
Under the law, some criminals would be released after serving one-third of their sentences instead of half.
The remainder of their sentence will be served in the community, where they will be monitored and may be sent back to prison if they reoffend.
More serious offenders would be released after serving half their sentences instead of two-thirds.
This policy was introduced with the aim of easing overcrowding in the prison system but was criticized by victims and their families, as well as opposition parties.
According to information obtained by the BBC, with this plan, approximately 700 prisoners would be released at the beginning of September.
The decision to pause the program follows criticism from the family of PC Andrew Harper, who was killed by three teenagers while being dragged along a country road by a car in 2019.
Two of PC Harper’s killers, who were both jailed for 13 years, would be eligible for the scheme from June 2027, when the longest fixed sentences will be added to the scheme.
PC Harper’s widow Lissie described the plans as “pathetic” and said politicians were “making decisions from behind the table that will have real and lasting consequences” for victims’ families.
Meanwhile, his mother said her son had not been given “necessary justice” and that “every victim would feel the same” about the early release plan.
Thousands of letters have been sent to victims in recent weeks warning that an early release plan would come in September.
Norris, who voted in support of the Criminal Code during the Starmer government, later said the decision to pause was taken “after listening to victims” and that he hoped to provide them with “certainty as soon as possible”.
He said: “The Prime Minister and I have heard concerns from victims, survivors and people across the country about the implementation of some very important elements of the Criminal Code.”
Norris added that one element the government needs to get right is the information given to victims before prisoners are released.
Norris refused to be asked why he did not raise concerns when the Criminal Code was first introduced but said Burnham was “quite right” to review the plan.
Sexual assault survivor Jade Belgrove, who is campaigning against the early release plan, said it was “so refreshing to have our voices heard”.
He told BBC News it was “terrifying” when he received a letter informing him his attacker could be released early.
Belgrove said this even led her to question whether it was worth reporting the attack in the first place.
