Parliament Approves Early Prisoner Release Plans

Government take steps to ease the pressures on our prisons.

On Thursday 25th July 2024 parliament debated and then approved a draft statutory instrument titled The Criminal Justice Act 2003 (Requisite and Minimum Custodial Periods) Order 2024.

When implemented on September 10, 2024, this measure will afford some prisoners earlier release. It has been introduced as the prison estate is very near full capacity.

Change in Policy.

It is estimated that this policy change will reduce demand for total prison places between 4,900 and 6,200 (and for the male estate between 4,600 and 5,900).

The Statutory Instrument (SI) modifies the automatic release point for certain Standard Determinate Sentences, including Section 250 sentences under the Sentencing Act 2020, and Detention in a Young Offenders Institution sentences.

A Standard Determinate Sentence is the most common type of custodial sentence issued by the courts. These sentences are available for most crimes.

When will prisoners be eligible for release?

The practical effect will be to authorise release when a person has served 40% of the sentence instead of 50% as now.

For example, a person sentenced to 30 months of custody would be eligible for automatic release (ignoring any issue of home detention curfew) after 15 months. When this change is implemented, release at 40% will mean that the prisoner will only need to serve 12 months before being eligible for automatic release.

Are there any exceptions?

Naturally, certain factions of the press will have you believe that there is almost an open door policy – and that dangerous offenders will be allowed to roam the streets once more.

However, there are lots of offences which are not included in the new release scheme, namely:

a. an offence under the Sexual Offences Act 1956;
b. an offence in the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (including the offences listed in Schedule 3 to that Act);
c. a sexual offence listed in Schedule 15 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003; d. a violent offence listed in Schedule 15 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003 where the sentence is 4 years or more;
e. stalking offences under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997;
f. controlling and coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship under the Serious Crime Act 2015;
g. non-fatal strangulation and suffocation under the Serious Crime Act 2015;
h. breach of a restraining order in the Sentencing Act 2020;
i. breach of a non-molestation order in the Family Law Act 1996;
j. breach of a Domestic Abuse Protection Order in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021
k. an offence under the National Security Act 2023;
l. an offence under the Official Secrets Act 1989;
m. an offence under the Official Secrets Act 1920;
n. an offence under the Official Secrets Act 1911;
o. additional terrorism-related offences and state threat-related offences

Terms for release

Where an individual has been sentenced to 12 months or more for a specified type of offence, the Probation Service Victim Contact Scheme may apply to victims.

There may be an additional number of discretionary cases. Where this is the case, the standard victim contact engagement will be required to support release.

Offenders who, at the point of commencement, have already been released from their sentence before the 50% automatic release point – for example, on Home Detention Curfew or End of Custody Supervised Licence – and are no longer in custody will be excluded from the changes as will Foreign National Offenders who have been removed from prison before their automatic release date for the purposes of deportation under the Early Removal Scheme.

Does this apply to those already sentenced?

Yes it does. Offenders who are in custody at the point of commencement serving a sentence which is eligible for the change in automatic release point will have their release date recalculated.

This may mean they will become immediately eligible for release if they are at or beyond the 40% point in their sentence when the change is commenced.

How We Can Help

If you have friends or family who are likely to be affected by these changes and you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. You can contact us on 0161 477 1121 or email us for more information.