Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced a pause on the early prisoner release scheme, a controversial programme set up in response to the prison overcrowding crisis inherited from the Tories. The decision follows criticism from Lissie Harper, widow of PC Andrew Harper, who described the potential release of two of her husband's killers as 'deplorable'.
Urgent review ordered
In a statement, Burnham said: 'Keeping the public safe will always be my top priority. I am working closely with the new Justice Secretary and have instructed my team to put a pause on the changes that were due to start in September. No prisoners will be let out under this policy until we have conducted an urgent review and done everything we can to minimise risk to the public. Where changes are needed, we will not hesitate to make them.'
Outcry over PC Harper's killers
The pause comes after an outcry over the potential release of Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, who were passengers in a car that dragged PC Harper, 28, for more than a mile down a country road as he responded to a burglary report. Both were jailed for 13 years after being convicted of manslaughter in 2020. Driver Henry Long did not qualify for early release under the government's criteria.
Lissie Harper said in a statement: 'It is deplorable to me that we have reached a point where releasing prisoners early is even considered acceptable. We speak of justice, accountability and standing with victims, yet decisions like this do the opposite.'
Background on the scheme
The early release scheme was announced due to a dangerous lack of prison spaces when Labour came to power in 2024. During the riots that summer, there were fears that jails would run out of spaces completely. Changes in the Sentencing Act now mean that prisoners on standard determinate sentences can be released after serving a third of their term. For violent or sexual offences, the changes mean they are released at the halfway point.
