Fury as prisoners ‘could be freed after serving just a SIXTH of their sentences’ under new early release plans

PRISONERS could reportedly be freed just a sixth of the way through their sentences under new early release plans. Proposals being examined by the Ministry of Justice could see home detention curfews (HDC) revived, forcing offenders to remain indoors from 7pm to 7am while monitored by electronic ankle tags. Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers were jailed for 13 years for the manslaughter of PC Harper but their potential early release sparked backlash Credit: The Sun PC Andrew Harper was 28 years old when he sustained fatal injuries while responding to a quad bike theft in Sulhamstead, Berkshire, in August 2019 Credit: PA The eligibility for HDC normally kicks in halfway through a custodial term. But the new “progression” sentencing model launching in October means some convicts could move to home confinement after completing a mere fraction of their total time. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Justice Secretary Alex Norris is weighing up the measure to help offset his decision to curtail the early release of high-profile convicts, including two of the men who killed Pc Andrew Harper. Initial MoJ plans to release roughly 6,000 prisoners – a group including rapists, killers, and violent offenders – from September triggered major backlash. Vile thugs Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers were jailed in 2020 for newlywed PC Harper’s manslaughter during a theft getaway in Berkshire. The fact they, among other dangerous offenders, could have been freed in January after serving half the sentence — instead of two-thirds — sparked fury. Andy Burnham had reportedly asked the Justice Secretary Norris to “work through further options” to find a way to keep the pair behind bars as he vowed to do “everything possible”. Whitehall insiders said that the PM was now “increasingly confident” Cole and Bowers would be excluded from the early release scheme after he ordered an urgent review. Most read in The Sun Cole (left) and Bowers were jailed in 2020 for newlywed PC Harper’s manslaughter during a burglary getaway in Berkshire Credit: PA PC Andrew Harper and his wife, Lissie Credit: PA But exempting these dangerous criminals from early release has drastically intensified the squeeze on cell space across the country. Men’s jails are currently running at 98 per cent capacity, leaving just 1,665 spaces available. Two sources have now confirmed that reviving HDC or “house arrest” is under consideration alongside other measures, reports The Telegraph. These include re-purposing parts of the youth and women’s estate for male prisoners, accelerating foreign criminal deportations, and reducing the number of offenders held on indefinite imprisonment for public protection sentences. While 4,000 prisoners are currently held on HDC, the scheme was set to be axed under the progression model. That system frees offenders either a third of the way through their sentences – down from 40 per cent – or halfway, down from two-thirds. But it is now being considered to prevent jails running out of space. HDC relies on strict eligibility criteria, barring most serious or violent offenders and subjecting every application to a risk assessment. This filtering process has been credited with reducing reoffending rates to 23 per cent, compared with 48 per cent among other released prisoners. An MoJ spokesman said: “Public safety will always be our priority. “We are fast-tracking a plan to keep more of the most serious offenders behind bars, on top of murderers, anyone on life sentences and sentences for rape, serious child sexual abuse and grooming offences which are already blocked from any changes. “We share the public’s anger that these options are even being considered, after we inherited a prison system on the brink of collapse. “We are fixing this by building 14,000 new prison places, expanding electronic tagging on an unprecedented scale and investing in probation services at record levels. “We are also exploring how we can go further, including faster deportation of foreign criminals and reviewing the unjust IPP sentences.”