Early Release Scheme Falters: A Glimpse of Overcrowding's Dirty Little Secret The proposed early release scheme in England and Wales, intended to alleviate overcrowding in prisons, has stalled.
Shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy warns that the scheme may still lead to the release of dangerous criminals, highlighting a more insidious problem: the government's failure to address the root cause of prison overcrowding.
The Sentencing Act 2026 aimed to tackle the 97% capacity crisis in prisons by introducing an early release scheme. However, its implementation has been marred by controversy and last minute changes.