Updates on the Government’s Early Release Scheme

Despite the Ministry of Justice initially stating that serious offenders would not be considered for the scheme, they’re now admitting this may not always be the case. Prisoners who have served a sentence for a serious crime and subsequently commit a less serious offence—leading to a consecutive sentence—could be eligible for early release (The Guardian).

The Ministry of Justice has been scrutinised for their lack of transparency on the subject. An investigation by Channel 4 found that one prisoner was allowed to leave jail in weeks rather than next year, after serving a sentence for serious sexual offences and then receiving a consecutive sentence after committing a lesser-serious crime.

Many claim that The Probation Service hasn’t had sufficient time to prepare and therefore many of these released offenders could be released without proper evaluations.

Nicole Jacobs, The Domestic Abuse Commissioner, emphasised that “some domestic abuse services report that a shortage of prison places may be leading to more lenient, or fewer custodial sentences”.

Charlie Taylor, the HMP Chief Inspector of Prisons, has raised concerns that prisoners are not “doing the work they need to do in order to go out and be successful when they leave prison”.

This may result in prisoners who haven’t received sufficient rehabilitation coming “back out on to the streets”. Taylor describes this predicament as a “revolving door” as reoffending rates may increase due to a lack of services to offer long-term support.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds reassured the public that the appropriate safeguards are being implemented, such as ankle taggling, secure supervision, curfews and release restrictions. (i News, BBC News)

Offenders will be released on a release licence which means they can be brought back into prison if they breach any of the conditions detailed. This includes attempted communication with victims or visiting locations with relation to their crimes. However, not all offenders are tagged and therefore not all are traceable (BBC News).

Domestic abuse charities have called for proper infrastructure and resources to be implemented to avoid any negative impacts this scheme may direct towards women and children. This includes appropriate funding and collaboration with domestic abuse organisations and services to help all victims affected receive support and reassurance. Accurate assessments of offenders alongside appropriate supervision are essential, alongside provisioning and funding Probation services to avoid high-risk offenders slipping through the net.

-Written by a SATEDA volunteer