Why is the UK government’s early prison release scheme so controversial?

By Charlie Sawyer

Published Sep 19, 2024 at 11:00 AM

Reading time: 4 minutes

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Image courtesy of Umanoide from Unsplash

On Tuesday 10 September 2024, 1,750 inmates were released from prisons across the UK as a part of an ongoing scheme to ease overcrowding. Keir Starmer and the Labour party have emphatically stated that the Tory government left the prison system in crisis and drastic measures were necessary in order to prevent a complete collapse. That being said, the controversial project has not only frightened victims across the UK (many of whom were unaware that their offenders were being released early), it has also been strongly criticised by the very people who’ve benefited from it: the prisoners themselves.

This week in Explained By a Blonde, I’m tackling a news story that has a lot of people divided. If you live in the UK, I don’t need to tell you how incredibly broken our prison system is. It’s underfunded, understaffed, oftentimes corrupt, and highly overcrowded. However, since its announcement earlier this year, the government’s early prison release scheme has felt a lot more like a quick fix than a long-term solution. With so many issues regarding reoffending, a lack of rehabilitation, and public unease, it’s imperative that we consider all of the reasons why this project might be the wrong answer. And if that is the case, whether there is a right one. Let’s get serious, ladies.

Back in July 2024, Keir Starmer revealed that the state of the prison system in the UK was far more “shocking” and critical than previously believed. Duh. It was this extreme situation that prompted ministers to plan the release of potentially tens of thousands of prisoners who have served 40 per cent of their sentence.

According to The Guardian, conservative politicians from the previous government have criticised Labour’s move, citing: “We held our nerve on this for months and found other ways to keep the system operational and get new prison places online—Labour have bottled it.”

However, with prisons at 99 per cent capacity, it was stated that a decision had to be made in July 2024 in order to avoid a complete catastrophe on 1 August.

In addition to the early prison release scheme, the Labour government has also indicated that they will change planning laws in England and Wales to allow more prisons to be built more rapidly. Indeed, sources have stated that the government is “already (trying) to move forward some of the projects in play,” as reported by Sky News.

There’s quite a lot of confusion over exactly which prisoners are qualified for early release and which are not. The key feature of the scheme is that eligible inmates will be automatically released after serving 40 per cent of their fixed-term sentence, instead of the usual 50 per cent.

As a side note, anyone serving a sentence for serious sexual crimes and/or sentences of four years or longer for violent crimes will not be considered for early release. According to the BBC, any prisoners convicted of domestic abuse (including connected crimes such as stalking and coerced control) are also excluded from the release scheme.

For context, Category A prisons house the most dangerous offenders, who have been convicted of the most serious crimes. These inmates are considered the most high-risk in respect of the public’s safety.

That being said, campaigners and charities that specialise in helping victims of domestic violence have argued that the exemptions list is not comprehensive enough.

The reason why the UK’s early prison release scheme is so controversial is two-fold. On the one hand, you have genuine concern from the general public, with fears surrounding prisoners reoffending and victims left unaware that their perpetrator is now walking free after only serving a short percentage of their sentence. On the other hand, you have several prisoners overtly aware of the reality that they’ll likely be back in prison within weeks due to a lack of proper support and rehabilitation.

When it comes to the victims, it’s been shocking to discover that many were not made aware of their offender’s early release. Baroness Newlove, the victims’ commissioner for England and Wales, shared that she had intended to make sure that all victims were informed of the release date, allowing them to request “protective measures.” Sadly, this has simply not been the case.

In other news, Napo, a trade union representing probation and family court staff across the UK, has emphasised the lack of consideration that’s been given to probation officers—with some staff members being given only a week to prepare for an influx of serious offenders who’ll need supervision.

Tania Bassett, a national official at Napo, told The Guardian: “If prisoners are released so late that our members are given a few days to prepare for people who may be serious offenders, then, inevitably, recalls are likely to go up.”

This leads us to the actual prisoners who have been released early. It’s not simply news publishers commenting on the lack of organisation surrounding this scheme, it’s the inmates themselves. And while there might be a few videos online showcasing the excitement of some to be let out early, let’s just say that it’s not a universal feeling.

Steven Quinn, who was released from Brixton prison on 10 September after having spent 27 years of his life in the system, told Channel 4 that he had little hope of staying out of prison for good.

Moreover, Crisis UK released a very important statement on the situation: “The early release scheme will ease bottlenecks in prisons, but this pressure can’t be transferred into the homelessness system. Councils must be supported so they can handle this but long term we need more social homes so no one is left with nowhere to go.”

The prison system in the UK is such a highly complex and layered problem that I could not cover it completely in a single article. And while reform might be on the government’s agenda, it’s probable that this scheme won’t resolve all the issues, and in more ways than one, it might even create even more chaos. I am hopeful though, change is possible and we shouldn’t rule out the idea of an optimistic future, no matter how difficult it might be to envision right now.