Prison population nears record levels despite early release scheme
England and Wales’ prison population is already back to near record levels, despite the Government expanding an early release scheme, new figures show.
A total of 88,238 people were in jail as of yesterday, up 231 on the previous week and a rise of more than 1,200 in the past two months, according to data published by the Ministry of Justice.
There are just 283 fewer prisoners now than the record high of 88,521 reached in September last year during the aftermath of the summer riots in towns and cities across the UK.
The figure comes as police arrested more than 500 people over the weekend for showing support for Palestine Action, despite the group being proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the Government.
Yesterday, Victims minister Alex Davies-Jones said those involved with the protest will ‘feel the force of the law’.
Securing a charge for an offence under the Terrorism Act will, in some instances, require approval by both the Crown Prosecution Service and Attorney General Lord Hermer, police said.
The majority of those arrested, 348, were aged 50 or over, according to a breakdown published by the Met on Sunday.
The spike in prison figures comes despite Government efforts to ease overcrowding by freeing some 26,456 offenders early since last year.
The scheme was launched as an emergency measure in September, with eligible inmates serving more than five years released after serving only 40 per cent of their fixed-term sentence, rather than the usual 50 per cent.
Ministers have since announced further plans to free up space following a major independent review by former Conservative Lord Chancellor David Gauke.
Prisoners in England and Wales, including some serious offenders, could be released after serving a third of their sentence under the reforms, though some inmates, including those with terror convictions, will not be eligible.
Speaking to the Yorkshire Post, the Victims Minister said: “When we came into office just over a year we were faced with a prisons system in crisis from the previous government, who had failed to take any action whatsoever to alleviate that.
"I’m really, really pleased that we’ve invested in building more prisons because there will always be a place for prisons, and we’ve just opened one recently in the local area (HMP Millsike) bringing more capacity on site.”
When asked how long she expected the 40 per cent release scheme to continue, she said: “The hope is we are going to be bringing forward the legislation from the (David Gauke) sentencing review later this autumn, because we need to get on top of the crisis, but ultimately we will not fail to act to keep the public safe, to keep perpetrators behind bars and ensure that victims feel supported and they have the justice they deserve.”
Meanwhile, more foreign criminals will be deported before their appeals have been heard as the Government expands its “deport now, appeal later” scheme.
Offenders from another 15 countries, including India, Bulgaria and Australia, will now be included in the scheme, bringing the total to 23 countries under the plans announced yesterday.