, Labour’s Shadow Justice
Secretary, has today written to the government after it
confirmed last night that it will extend the early release of
prisoners scheme up to an unprecedented 60 days.
The text of the letter is below:
Dear Secretary of State
I write regarding your written statement published late on 11
March 2024 which announced that the End of Custody Supervised
Licence Scheme (ECSL) has now been expanded so that prisoners who
are eligible will now be released up to an unprecedented 60 days
ahead of their automatic release date. Given the extraordinary
nature of this intervention and the potential risk posed to
public safety, I believe that it is of paramount importance that
you come to the House to explain why this decision has been
taken.
In your statement on the Government’s approach to criminal
justice on 16 October 2023, you accepted that a capacity crisis
has taken hold in our prisons. Over the weekend, it was even
reported that the country will run out of prison spaces by
Easter, potentially triggering prison riots and prison vans
leaving courts carrying offenders without anywhere to take
them.
In reality, it has been clear for some time that the situation
was becoming unsustainable – as your Government has been warned
by everyone from the Justice Select Committee to the National
Audit Office. And it is common sense that over-flowing prisons
cannot function properly – so not only has violence increased,
but prison is now failing to fulfil its basic function of cutting
crime, with reoffending rates also on the rise.
In order to address this crisis of your own Government’s making,
in October you trailed emergency measures to release some
prisoners on licence up to 18 days early. You were explicit that
this power would “only be used for a limited period and only in
targeted areas”- the scheme was to be a “a temporary operational
measure to relieve immediate pressure”.
It later emerged – from a combination of off-hand comments from
other ministers, responses to written questions from
Parliamentarians and media reporting – that the scheme in fact
began the very next day. From the outset, then, you have chosen
not to be transparent with the House and the public.
Indeed, you have already secretly expanded the scheme even before
the 11 March 2024 announcement. Last month we learned from a leak
to the media that the scheme would be used in more prisons and,
according to unpublished guidance to prison governors, be
“activated for an undefined period”.
Now we have learnt that eligibility for early release is to begin
up to an unprecedented 60 days in advance – over three times the
number of days on licence as under any previous scheme. No other
government has ever found itself having to do this and yet the
House has been provided with only a written statement quietly put
out late in the evening.
This is plainly inadequate given the gravity of the situation.
You have a responsibility to be candid with the House and the
public about the reasons why this scheme has been expanded and
the impact it is having. Specifically, I ask that you come to the
House to answer the following questions:
- How many prisoners have been released early under the scheme
to date?
- Which prisons are using the scheme?
- Which types of offenders are being released early under the
scheme?
- Are domestic abusers and stalkers eligible for release under
the scheme?
- Why has the scheme been expanded to early release up to 60
days?
- Why has the scheme been “activated”
indefinitely?
- What measures have been put in place to ensure that probation
has the time and resources to adequately assess risk and protect
the public?
I and other members of the House have asked your department for
answers on the above multiple times with no success. This is
completely unacceptable. The public deserve to know the truth
following 14 years of your mismanagement of the criminal justice
system. I request that you come to the House immediately with
answers.
Yours sincerely
