Male prisons in England and Wales have fewer than 1,800 spaces
Summary
There are fewer than 1,800 empty beds in male prisons in England and Wales, the lowest number since March. The government plans to release about 5,000 inmates early starting in October to reduce overcrowding, but many offenders return to prison, limiting space relief.Key Facts
- More than 83,000 male inmates occupy prison spaces in England and Wales.
- The number of empty prison places dropped to below 1,800, the lowest level since March.
- The government introduced a rule against jailing people for less than one year to free up space.
- Many offenders are recalled to prison for breaking conditions or re-offending, reducing available space.
- Starting in October, about 5,000 inmates are planned to be released early to ease overcrowding.
- The Ministry of Justice is building new prisons and expanding electronic tagging (monitoring offenders electronically).
- Some prisoners, including those convicted of serious crimes like murder and rape, will be excluded from early release.
- Prime Minister Andy Burnham faced criticism for initially allowing some serious offenders, including killers of a police officer, to be eligible for early release but later worked to exclude them.
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