DOWNING STREET was blocking last night the announcement of Home Office proposals for the early release of up to 30,000 prisoners to ease the overcrowding in jails.
John Reid, the Home Secretary, had been preparing to unveil his “open the prison gates” measure today.
But Whitehall sources said that the Prime Minister’s office was refusing to give the go-ahead, fearing that the measure would damage Labour’s reputation on law and order.
It was not clear whether the Home Office would announce the measure anyway. The plan would allow low-risk inmates to be released ten days before the end of their sentences.
It would apply to offenders sentenced to more than four weeks but less than four years in jail. It would not apply to high-risk criminals, such as those convicted of manslaughter, child cruelty, sex offences or grievous bodily harm with intent. It would not apply to foreigner nationals. But it would mean that a person sentenced to six weeks in jail could have been released after serving just eleven days.
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Yesterday there were 79,088 inmates packed into the 139 jails in England and Wales, leaving fewer than 700 spaces free.
A previous early-release scheme, administrative release, was discussed at a meeting attended by Mr Reid in May, but minutes seen by The Times showed that he was “concerned about such a measure but would consider it if placed in an overall tough package”.
It is only weeks since Mr Reid unveiled plans to rebalance the justice system in favour of the “law-abiding majority”. Even as he spoke, early release was being considered by his officials as a way of dealing with the jail crisis. At the time the Home Office denied that ministers were considering the idea.
Mr Reid promised to provide a further 8,000 jail spaces by 2011, but even this would not be enough to meet projected figures for the prison population.
The early release would involve extending Prison Rule 9, known as transitional home leave, which allows inmates to be temporarily released.
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Last week governors of young offender institutions were urged to identify those eligible for early release as soon as possible to try to ease a crisis in the youth detention system. The Youth Justice Board had proposed a series of emergency measures because such institutions were nearly full.
Opposition politicians criticised the Government for failing to provide enough places to hold the number of offenders being jailed by the courts and for resorting to panic measures.
Police also condemned the plan. Alan Gordon, vice-chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “There is nothing more demoralising for victims of crime and for officers who work tirelessly to secure convictions to see offenders released early.
“If we need more prisons then let’s build them. Whilst the idea being considered by the Home Office may just be to release 10 days early, that’s 10 days less rehabilitation and 10 days more to re-offend.”
David Davis, the Shadow Home Secretary, said: “It is time the Government admitted that its own serial failure has led to the chronic lack of capacity in our prisons and did something about it.”