The planned early release of two of PC Andrew Harper's killers is a national disgrace. What is the point of prison sentences if even thieves who dragged a brave young police officer to his death behind a car can walk free, having served only half of their time in jail? It is hard to imagine a worse example of how our 'criminal justice' system favours the rights of criminals over justice for victims like PC Harper and his devastated family. Something must be done about it – and done now.
Labour's Sentencing Act and Public Outcry
The Labour Government knew full well that killers, rapists and paedophiles could be among the 6,000 criminals due to be released early under its Sentencing Act, which comes into force in September. Now, in response to the public outcry about the prospect of PC Harper's killers being released, new Labour Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said that he will 'review' the policy, but quickly added that 'I can't say that I can change the policy completely'.
Well, Prime Minister, I can say with certainty that a Reform UK government would scrap your policy completely – and we'll make sure that dangerous criminals are kept locked up to keep the public safe.
Reform UK's Plan to Fix the Problem
Labour's excuse for the early release scheme is that our prisons are overflowing, after the Conservatives only added an extra 500 prison places during their 14 years in power. Frankly, Reform does not accept that excuse. We have a plan to fix the problem.
For starters, Reform will deport the 10,500 foreign criminals clogging up our prisons. We will make that possible by quitting the European Convention on Human Rights and scrapping Tony Blair's Human Rights Act. And we will end the shortage of prison places. During the Covid crisis, NHS Nightingale hospitals were built in weeks with help from the Army. We will build new Nightingale prisons in 18 months.
These low-cost, high-security, pre-fabricated prisons will be built on Ministry of Defence land. Disused military barracks could also be converted into jails. Unlike the old military camps that Labour is currently filling with unvetted illegal immigrants, they will definitely not be left open for inmates to come and go as they please!
Tough Sentences and No Early Release
Those thousands more prison spaces will mean we can make sure that convicted criminals serve their sentences. Under Reform, the time a criminal spends in prison will be a definite sentence, not a mere suggestion. There will be tough prison sentences with no early release at all for violent criminals, sex offenders and anybody caught with a knife. Drug trafficking will carry much tougher sentences. And there will be no more free passes for 'everyday' crimes: we will make sure that police and the courts pursue burglars, phone thieves and shoplifters.
Our criminal justice policies have been developed on the watch of Vanessa Frake, the former prison governor who is now Reform UK's prisons adviser. Vanessa's real-world experience and expertise makes her far better qualified to tackle the crisis than career politicians who have only seen the inside of a prison on a sanitised PR visit.
With great people such as Vanessa and Colin Sutton, a former top detective who has just been elected as the Reform UK police and crime commissioner for Norfolk, we are getting ready to tackle our lawless society. This will be at the heart of the comprehensive plan Reform is working on to fix Broken Britain.
On the other hand, if Burnham cannot scrap the Government's disgraceful early release scheme, that will be conclusive evidence that the British people are not safe in Labour's hands.
