Police commissioner urges government to reevaluate prisoner release as criminal justice on 'point of collapse'

But the Ministry of Justice says the prison system is "on the point of collapse” and they have to take action to give them time to sort the issues out.

West Mercia PCC John Campion has raised a "stark warning on the Government decision to release 'thousands' of prisoners early.

The main measure announced includes the release of prisoners after they have served 40 per cent of their time in prison if they have been sentenced to less than four years.

Mr Campion chairs West Mercia’s Local Criminal Justice Board, which brings together partners across the criminal justice system.

He said: “This announcement does not fix the fundamental issue.

"The fact remains that a third of former prisoners commit another offence within 12 months of release.

“The system is stuck in a continuous cycle of offending and re-offending which is only going to speed-up by enabling prisoners to serve less of their sentence and effectively, undermining prison as a deterrent.

“What’s more, this has a human cost.

"Cutting time behind bars does not deliver justice for victims of crime who suffer a life-long sentence dealing with the harm caused to them.

"This impact extends to future victims, who will see their perpetrator walking free serving less than half of their sentence.

“In West Mercia, there are now record number of police officers which I will ensure continue to bring evermore offenders to justice – a key priority of the communities I serve.

"Therefore, it’s incumbent on any governing party to set-up the whole system to deliver victims the justice they deserve by delivering effective punishment.

“I recognise the Government has to act to address the current crisis, but it must also quickly set out its longer-term vision for fixing our criminal justice system.”

The Government is planning on the release later this year to give the probation service a chance to get ready for an increase in its workload. It's also planning a 10 year capacity strategy.

Shabana Mahmood, the Lord Chancellor, said: "Our prisons are on the point of collapse.”

The Lord Chancellor said that if prisons were to run out of places, courts would be forced to delay sending offenders to jail and police unable to arrest dangerous criminals – a crisis which would leave the public at risk from unchecked criminality.

n a speech at HMP Five Wells in Northamptonshire, Lord Chancellor Shabana Mahmood said: “When prisons are full, violence rises – putting prison officers on the front line at risk. When no cells are available, suspects cannot be held in custody. This means vanloads of dangerous people circling the country, with nowhere to go.

“The police would have to use their cells as a prison overflow, keeping officers off the streets. Soon, the courts would grind to a halt, unable to hold trials.

“In short, if we fail to act now, we face the collapse of the criminal justice system. And a total breakdown of law and order.”

With only hundreds of places left in the adult male estate, prisons have been routinely operating at over 99 percent capacity since the start of 2023.

Prison cells are now expected to run out within weeks.

Sentences for serious violent offences of four years or more, as well as sex offences will be automatically excluded, and, in an important distinction from End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme, the early release of offenders in prison for domestic abuse connected crimes will also be excluded. This will include:

Stalking offences

Controlling or coercive behaviors in an intimate or family relationship

Non-fatal strangulation and suffocation

Breach of Restraining Order, Non-Molestation Order, and Domestic Abuse Protection Order.

Anyone released will be monitored on licence by the Probation Service through measures which can include electronic tagging and curfews. They face being recalled to prison if they breach their licence conditions, the Ministry of Justice said.