The Aporia
The Aporia
On October 10, 650 offenders were released early from prisons in England and Wales as part of a government plan to address prison overcrowding. This release marks the second phase of the scheme, which began on October 1 with the early release of 700 prisoners serving less than 19 months. The current phase includes those serving up to two and a half years for various crimes, such as violent offenses and domestic abuse. These offenders are being released after completing one-third of their sentences instead of the usual half.
The plan will gradually expand each month until June when it applies to prisoners serving more than 12 years. However, concerns have been raised about the effectiveness of electronic tagging and monitoring of these released individuals. Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy criticized the government for failing to provide details on how many freed inmates had been fitted with electronic tags and accused them of making "nonsense" claims regarding safeguards. Additionally, probation officers are considering strike action over pay and workload issues exacerbated by the release scheme.
Lithgow, G. (2026, October 13). ‘Reoffending off the charts’, say Tories as early release scheme continues. Evening Standard. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/nick-timothy-government-andrew-harper-tories-commons-b1300637.html
Lithgow, George. “‘Reoffending off the charts’, say Tories as early release scheme continues.” Evening Standard, 13 Oct. 2026, https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/nick-timothy-government-andrew-harper-tories-commons-b1300637.html.
Lithgow, George. “‘Reoffending off the charts’, say Tories as early release scheme continues.” Evening Standard, October 13, 2026. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/nick-timothy-government-andrew-harper-tories-commons-b1300637.html.
Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.
