Violent thugs set to go free under early release plan
HUNDREDS of criminals including violent offenders will be released from prison under new crisis plans.
The emergency measures to free up space in overcrowded jails were announced by Justice Secretary Alex Chalk last night.
Inmates serving up to four years will be freed more than a month early – increasing to two months early in a planned expansion of the scheme.
Without the drastic action, it is thought that jails would run out of space by the end of the month.
The first round of releases – expected to include burglars, thieves and drug dealers – could walk free within days. The Ministry of Justice could not say how many criminals were eligible, but it is thought thousands could be let out early over the coming months.
The End of Custody Supervised Licence (ECSL) scheme applies to prisoners in England and Wales. It was previously used in October during a peak in the jail population, and gave offenders up to 18 days off their sentences.
This has now been increased to 35 days but criminals could be released up to 60 days early if the immediate measures fail to empty enough cells.
The plan is ‘ geographically targeted’ to free cells in parts of the country where prisons are most overcrowded. Those released will be ‘ on licence’ and may have to wear a tag or observe a curfew.
While sex offenders and terrorists will be excluded, lower-level violent criminals will be eligible for release. Violent offences punished with less than four years’ imprisonment can include robberies, grievous bodily harm, actual bodily harm and wounding.
Low-level drug dealers, including those convicted of selling Class A substances such as heroin, can be freed from jail.
Burglary, for which offenders can serve up to six years, also falls under the scheme and thefts such as shoplifting will be eligible.
The ECSL scheme was first introduced by former Labour justice secretary Jack Straw in 2007. It saw 80,000 criminals freed up to 18 days early before it was scrapped in the run-up to the 2010 election.
At least three murders were committed by freed prisoners during the period they should have been behind bars, according to data gathered at the time by the Conservatives, who were then in opposition.
The number of inmates in England and Wales on Friday was 88,220 – just five below October’s all-time record.
By comparison, the figure was 44,000 when then Tory home secretary Michael Howard delivered his famous ‘ prison works’ speech championing use of custodial sentences in 1993.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice and Home Office are establishing a new ‘taskforce’ of 400 civil servants to speed up the deportation of foreign offenders.
The threshold for deporting foreign criminals handed a suspended sentence will also be lowered. Currently, those handed up to 12 months’ suspended jail time are eligible, but that is set to be halved.
Under laws passed in 2022, countries which fail to take back offenders can be penalised, by making it harder for their citizens to obtain visas for travel to Britain.
‘Burglary falls under the scheme’