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Starting Thursday, hundreds of prisoners will be released as part of an expanded early release scheme that aims to reduce overcrowding in prisons, with a total of 5,000 set to be freed over the next year. The plan was revised to exclude rapists and serious child sex offenders after initial backlash from Prime Minister Andy Burnham's proposal. This comes amid a rise in prison population by more than 1,700 since June 29, reaching a total of 85,761. The scheme is mandated by the 2026 Sentencing Act and faces public criticism due to earlier images of inmates celebrating their release with luxury vehicles.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-30,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
On Thursday, 700 prisoners were set to be released early from jails across England and Wales as part of an expanded government scheme aimed at easing prison overcrowding. The total number of early releases over the next year is estimated to reach around 5,000, down from an initial plan that would have seen 6,000 inmates freed early; this reduction came after ministers excluded rapists and serious child sex offenders from eligibility. The scheme has faced significant backlash, particularly due to concerns about victim safety, with the domestic abuse commissioner warning that survivors will "live in fear" as perpetrators are released early. Among those eligible for release are Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole, who were convicted of manslaughter in 2020 but will now be excluded from the scheme following public outcry. Prison overcrowding has worsened, with the inmate population jumping by over 1,700 in just three months to reach approximately 87,500 inmates as of late August 2024.
Written for “Prison Early Release Scheme” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 17 other(s) covering the same event.
Claims extracted
16
claim-shaped sentences
Uncertain
6%
1 of 16 hedged
Leaning
Leans right
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Correction & hedging signals
67.5
corrections and hedging in what we collected;
not a measure of accuracy
Outlets on this story
18
Crime & Law
Narrative spread
1
articles carrying this framing
Hundreds of prisoners are due to walk free from jail on Thursday in the first wave of the Government’s controversial expanded early release scheme.
asserted
Hundreds → walk → scheme
Some 5,000 prisoners are scheduled to be released in stages over the next year, down from 6,000, after ministers intervened to exempt rapists and the most serious child sex offenders.
asserted
ministers → schedule → rapists
The plan to free up capacity in the overcrowded male prison estate comes as figures show the number of people behind bars has jumped by more than 1,700 in the past three months.
asserted
number → free → months
Ministers say the expanded early release scheme is needed to prevent the justice system from collapsing, after a summer when the issue dominated news headlines.
asserted
issue → say → headlines
Criminals will be excluded from the scheme if they have been jailed for a range of offences, including members of child grooming gangs convicted of indecent assault.
asserted
they → exclude → assault
Prime Minister Andy Burnham faced significant backlash for his initial plans to overhaul the scheme, which would have seen Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole, who were convicted of Pc Harper’s manslaughter in 2020, eligible for early release from next year.
asserted
who → face → year
The expansion of the scheme is happening as a result of the 2026 Sentencing Act, which allows ministers to reduce the point at which certain prisoners can be freed from 40% of a fixed-term sentence to a third.
asserted
prisoners → happen → third
Read More
Several hundred people are likely to be released on October 1 as part of the first phase of the expanded scheme, with more to follow in subsequent months.
asserted
people → read → months
The total prison population of England and Wales is now 1,022 below the record high of 88,521, which was reached on September 6 2024 in the wake of the public disorder that followed the Southport killings earlier that year.
asserted
that → reach → killings
The Government launched the early release scheme just four days later, on September 10 2024.
asserted
Government → launch → September
Images of prisoners celebrating their early release caused public anger in the following weeks.
asserted
Images → celebrate → weeks
Inmate Daniel Dowling-Brooks said “big up Keir Starmer” as he was picked up in a convoy of a white Bentley and black Mercedes G-Wagon outside HMP Swaleside in Kent in October 2024.
asserted
he → say → October
Another prisoner at the same jail was welcomed with an embrace as he was picked up in a black Rolls-Royce by a group of men in matching hoodies.
asserted
he → welcome → hoodies
A total of 70,066 prisoners had been released under the scheme up to the end of March 2026, according to the latest MoJ data.
uncertain
total → release → data
Prison numbers fell sharply in the weeks after the scheme was launched, but started climbing again in early 2025 and have since fluctuated mostly between 86,000 and 88,000.
asserted
scheme → fall → 86,000
Under a separate process introduced by the previous Conservative government, 13,325 prisoners in England and Wales were freed early between October 17 2023 and September 9 2024.
asserted
prisoners → introduce → October
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