Hundreds of criminals start leaving prison under new early release scheme
The UK government has begun an early release scheme for prisoners in England and Wales to alleviate severe overcrowding in the prison system. While officials argue the move is necessary to prevent capacity failure, it has faced criticism from victims and concerns regarding probation resources.
Why it matters
The policy highlights the tension between managing prison capacity and ensuring public safety and effective rehabilitation.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Around 4,500 prisoners will be released early in waves between October this year and June 2027
Hundreds of criminals are being released early from prisons in England and Wales under new rules introduced to prevent facilities reaching capacity.
The first 700 of an expected 4,500 inmates eligible under the scheme were due to be let out on Thursday.
The government has stressed they will remain subject to strict monitoring arrangements, including the expanded use of electronic tagging, and has said action was needed to prevent prisons from becoming full.
But the plan has been strongly criticised by victims and questions have been raised over whether the Probation Service has sufficient resources to monitor thousands more criminals in the community.
Also covering this story
One other newsroom covered this event. We read that version too.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in