Hundreds of prisoners begin early release in England and Wales

Prisoners in England and Wales began leaving jail early on Thursday under a scheme intended to ease pressure on prison space. Around 700 releases were expected in the first wave. People serving sentences of up to 19 months can become eligible after serving a third of their term. [1]

Ministers plan to release about 4,500 people over several months. That figure was reduced from around 6,000 after further offences were excluded, including all forms of manslaughter, grooming offences and causing or allowing the death of a child. The government says those released will face strict monitoring, including wider use of electronic tags. A breach of licence conditions can lead to an immediate return to prison. [1]

Outside Leeds Prison, Matthew Johnson, 35, told the BBC he had served six months of an 18-month sentence for actual bodily harm. He described two people sharing cells intended for one and said staff were overwhelmed. Jake Sykes, leaving Lincoln Prison, also described overcrowding and said support fell away after release. He was due to be tagged, barred from pubs and subject to a curfew. [1]

A man who gave his name only as David, leaving HMP Brixton, said he feared people would be “set up to fail” without support outside prison. London’s Victims’ Commissioner, Andrea Simon, raised a different concern: she warned that the offence exclusions still left some victims frightened by an offender’s imminent release. [1]