Burnham stirs up political row with review of release plans for violent criminals | Prisons and probation

Andy Burnham has been dragged into a deepening political row after ordering a review of plans for the early release of thousands of murderers, rapists and sex offenders from prison in September.

After PC Andrew Harper’s family expressed anger that his killers could be released, the prime minister hit back by promising to make sure “everything is reviewed” before a new tranche of nearly 6,000 criminals are released.

But soon after Burnham’s comments, prison reform groups, government officials and politicians warned that abandoning measures to ease prison overcrowding could lead to the criminal justice system “collapsing under its own weight.”

Just days into her premiership, Burnham was quick to intervene on policy issues that included a possible increase in the income tax personal allowance, which has been frozen since 2022.

To clear up confusion, he said there was no “commitment” to increase the allowance from £12,570 but the move would be considered in the budget, expected in the autumn.

“I want to answer questions honestly in this job, as I’ve said before. I think it’s all about trusting politics and doing politics differently, and I’m determined to continue working that way,” he said.

New criminal laws have been passed under Keir Starmer’s government to ease a looming prison overcrowding crisis that ministers said in November could cripple the criminal justice system.

Unlike previous emergency measures, which saw tens of thousands of prisoners released in the first months of the Starmer government, the Criminal Code contains no exemptions for prisoners convicted of serious crimes, domestic violence or terrorism.

PC Harper was 28 when he was fatally injured while responding to a quad bike theft in Sulhamstead, Berkshire, in August 2019. Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, who were passengers in the vehicle and were 17 at the time, were sentenced to 13 years in prison for manslaughter but may be eligible for early release under the new Criminal Code.

His widow, Lissie Harper, successfully campaigned for legal changes called Harper’s Law to impose tougher penalties for the manslaughter of on-duty emergency workers.

He said in a statement: “When I fought for the Harper Act, I was supported not only by the then Conservative government but also by the Labor Party. They promised to support our cause and agreed that those who kill emergency workers should face tougher sentences because some crimes are so serious they demand meaningful sentences.”

“Cross-party support helped make the Harper Act a reality. Today it appears to have been forgotten.”

Asked to respond to the Harper family’s comments, Burnham said she would review the plans with the justice secretary, Alex Norris. “I will be reviewing this entire policy. As a country we have not invested in prison land when we should have, going back a decade or so when it was clear there would be pressure, which 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 examine every aspect of this matter with the justice minister. I cannot say that I can change the policy completely, but I will examine it in detail before going any further,” he said.

Those in Whitehall have pointed out that any changes to the early release scheme would contradict claims by the previous justice secretary, David Lammy, who told the Guardian this month that without it there would be “no capacity left” in prisons in England and Wales in November.

A government official said: “As it takes seven years to build a prison there is little leeway. Andy will need to get into these matters but there are no easy choices because if he doesn’t we will be at capacity in the prison by Christmas.”

Andrea Coomber, chief executive of the Howard League for Sentencing Reform, called for caution. “This is a system that is on the verge of collapsing under its own weight. When first putting forward these proposals, Shabana Mahmood described the alternative as ‘a complete collapse of law and order’.”

“We need this government to finally confront the reality that politicians have allowed sentencing inflation to run rampant for 20 years. We are sleepwalking down the path to US-style mass incarceration, with increasingly longer sentences.”

Enver Solomon, chief executive of social justice charity Nacro, said prisons should not be allowed to fill up again. “It should not be forgotten that the reason why the Labor Party government introduced the early release plan is to ensure that there is no new capacity crisis in prisons,” he said.

Former Conservative prisons minister Rory Stewart said: “Early release is not an easy choice – but it is the least bad option if we really want to work intensively with prisoners and reduce reoffending.” Under the law, some serious offenders will be eligible for release at half of their sentence, instead of two-thirds. Those convicted of lesser crimes could be released after serving one-third of their sentences instead of 40 percent. Prisoners incarcerated for certain violent or sexual crimes are eligible to be released at half of their sentence instead of two-thirds.

The bill was prepared by Minister of Internal Affairs Shabana Mahmood and presented to the parliament. Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp wrote in

He said releasing jailed car passengers “is an insult to the memory of Andrew Harper and to the police officers who risk themselves every day to protect us.”

Burnham’s promise to review the policy was welcomed by groups working with victims. Former safeguarding minister Jess Phillips told the Guardian it was important to put “appropriate systems” in place to assess risk and involve victims. “There is a chance to fundamentally change how victims are treated in the system and improve the end-to-end experience of victims of violence against women and girls in the justice system,” she said.

Ciara Bergman, chief executive of Rape Crisis England and Wales, said: “Clearly, there are significant challenges facing our government, including how to manage overcrowding and under-resourcing, but solutions to these challenges cannot come at the expense of survivors.”

Victim Support CEO Katie Kempen said the review was encouraging. “This review must urgently correct the fact that most victims currently have no way of knowing whether an offender can be released early. It is unacceptable that so many victims are left in the dark about this; this must change.”