Latest news with #communitysentences
The Guardian
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Cutting crime with community sentences
Re your article (Judges told to favour community alternatives over short prison sentences, 20 May), those given short custodial sentences risk losing their job and home, and there can be a negative impact on family relationships. Being released from prison homeless, unemployed and estranged from family increases the chances of reoffending. Community-based sentences should reduce this and have a positive impact on recidivism. Judith FelineFormer governor, HMP Maidstone, Kent I couldn't agree more with Patrick Grant ('Buy less!': why Sewing Bee's Patrick Grant wants us to stop shopping, 19 May). In 2018, I started an experiment to not buy any clothes for a year – it lasted three years, well into the pandemic. I had begun the new year with throwing out 19 pairs of shoes, all with some disrepair. I now buy very few new things. Buying quality is the key, rather than fashionable items. Oxfam will give you a £5 Marks & Spencer voucher if you donate at least one item of M&S VnoucekShrewsbury, Shropshire Instead of demolishing the £25m Brexit food control post in Portsmouth (Report, 31 May), perhaps it could be used to store all the red tape created for UK businesses as a result of Boris Johnson's Brexit deal. A museum dedicated to Brexit. Paresh MotlaThame, Oxfordshire Melanie van Niekirk's letter (23 May) brought a smile to my face and reminded me of the time when discussing saucepans, my wife asked our friend how he finds his induction hob? 'In the kitchen on the left as soon as you enter,' was his prompt repost. Dr Guru SinghLoughborough, Leicestershire Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Telegraph
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Labour will hand 40,000 criminals a get out of jail free card
Up to 43,000 criminals are set to avoid prison each year under Government plans to combat jail overcrowding, an analysis of official figures by The Telegraph reveals. The criminals, including burglars, shoplifters and knife offenders, will instead face community sentences under the plans to scrap most jail terms of under 12 months. The law change, recommended by an independent review headed by David Gauke, the former Tory justice secretary, will order courts to only jail offenders for less than a year in 'exceptional circumstances', including domestic abuse, stalking and breaching orders linked to violence against women and girls. The analysis also reveals that up to 1,500 killers, rapists and other serious sexual and violent offenders will be eligible for early release each year under the shake-up, which is designed to free up nearly 10,000 prison spaces. The criminals, whose offences include manslaughter, attempted murder, rape, wounding with intent to cause GBH and sexual assault, will be eligible for early release half way through their sentences of four or more years, rather than two thirds, if they behave well and engage with rehabilitation schemes. Up to a further 28,600 offenders on standard determinate sentences will be eligible for release as little as a third of the way through their sentences, depending on behaviour. The offences include violence against the person, sex offences, robbery, theft, drug possession, fraud and possession of weapons, for which the criminals would currently only be allowed out after serving 40 per cent of their sentence. If they fail to behave, they would face up to 50 per cent of their sentence in jail. Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, said: 'Sir Keir Starmer's decision is a gift to hardened criminals who will now be free to cause carnage on our streets. 'This is certain to cause a crime wave and the complete breakdown of law and order. The only people benefiting from this Labour Government are criminals and illegal migrants. 'Instead of offering huge sentence discounts to killers and rapists, Starmer should free up space in our prisons by deporting the 10,800 foreign offenders clogging up our jails. But he won't, as he's wedded to broken human rights laws and previously campaigned to keep foreign criminals in the UK.' He made the comments as police chiefs have demanded ministers exempt 'high-risk' violent and sexual offenders from their early prison release scheme to protect the public from 'out of control' criminals. They have also warned there will be a surge in reoffending by freed prisoners unless Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, provides the extra cash for probation officers to supervise the thousands more criminals set to be released early. The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) has written to Shabana Mahmood, the Justice Secretary, warning that letting criminals 'out of prison' earlier must not mean the offenders are 'out of control'. The analysis, based on the number of offenders jailed last year, showed that up to nearly 11,000 shoplifters could avoid jail, as well as more than 3,000 convicted of assaulting emergency workers and a further 3,000 imprisoned for common assault and battery. It could also include as many as 2,300 burglars of non-domestic dwellings and nearly 400 house burglars. The figures also suggest 2,300 convicted of knife crime and more than 1,000 sent down for actual bodily harm assaults could escape jail. Chief Constable Sacha Hatchett, who leads on criminal justice for the NPCC, said there must be adequate funds in the forthcoming spending review to invest in probation officers and technology, to ensure freed criminals were effectively supervised in the community to reduce reoffending. 'It is crucial for public safety that high-risk offenders, including those convicted of violent or sexual offences, and those who pose a threat to national security, are exempt from early prison release,' she said. 'Robust prison sentences for these crimes must remain in place as a strong deterrent and means of keeping the public safe. It is also crucial that victims of domestic abuse are protected, and that perpetrators understand that there will be harsh consequences for breaching orders.' Ms Mahmood told MPs she had secured an extra £700 million for the probation service in the spending review, as well as deploying 'tens of thousands' more electronic tags to place high-risk offenders under effective 'house arrest' with curfews at night and during the day alongside tighter exclusions, which they must not leave.
The Independent
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Would shorter prison sentences ‘spark a crime wave'? Here's what the evidence says
The final report of the Independent Sentencing Review has proposed the most significant reform of sentencing and punishment in England and Wales since the 1990s. The review, chaired by former Conservative justice secretary David Gauke, calls for a number of changes to address the crisis of overcrowding in prisons. These include using fewer and shorter prison sentences, enhanced opportunities for early release based on good behaviour, and more use of community sentences. The government has already accepted most of the recommendations in principle, though many will require legislation to bring them into effect. The justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, has said that the most serious offenders should not be eligible for an earlier release under the proposals. Prisons in England and Wales have been at or near capacity for a number of years, and frequently exceed their safe capacity. Official data shows that the current adult prison population is estimated to be around 87,700, compared with a maximum operational capacity of around 88,800. However, maximum capacity figures are only recorded annually, and the poor conditions of the prison estate mean the usable maximum may often be lower at any given time. Without reforms to sentencing, the prison population is projected to increase to up to 105,000 by 2029. In September 2024, prison overcrowding resulted in the emergency early release of around 1,700 prisoners serving sentences of less than five years who had served 40% of their sentence. They would ordinarily have not been eligible for early release until they had served 50% of their sentences. The Gauke review was commissioned to create a more sustainable solution to prevent further emergency measures. However, both the review and the emergency measures have come under criticism, namely that dangerous offenders will be released and communities and victims will be at risk. The shadow home secretary, Robert Jenrick, has claimed that the most recent proposals will 'spark a crime wave'. So, will shorter sentences make communities less safe? What does the evidence say? A core recommendation is that custody should be used only as a last resort. It calls for sentences of less than 12 months to only be given in exceptional circumstances, for example, where the offender is known to pose a high level of risk to a specific victim despite being sentenced for a less serious offence. The research on short-term imprisonment consistently shows that it is ineffective for a number of reasons. Short prison sentences are disproportionately expensive, especially when compared with community sentences. The offenders serving them have committed relatively minor offences, so pose a low risk other than in exceptional cases. Perhaps the most significant finding is the fact that the shorter the sentence, the higher the reoffending rate. Reoffending is around 55% for prisoners sentenced to less than 12 months, compared with an overall rate of 27.5%. If reoffending can be reduced by using more effective sentences, communities will be safer. Another key proposal is the 'earned progression model'. Under this, most prisoners (except those sentenced for specified serious sexual or violent offences) would be eligible for release after serving one-third of their sentence. They must have engaged constructively with the prison regime. They would then be supervised intensively in the community by probation services until they had served two-thirds of their sentence. After this, they would not be actively supervised. Prisoners who fail to engage constructively would not be eligible for release until the halfway point of their sentence. Under the early release policy introduced by the government in September 2024, these prisoners would be released after serving just 40% of their sentences. There is a sound evidence base for incentivising good behaviour in prison, rather than simply punishing bad behaviour. It is shown to help prisoners develop a sense of autonomy and accountability for their actions. This can help them abstain from reoffending once released. A focus on effective rehabilitation, rather than punishment alone, runs through the review. For example, recommendations for improved and targeted substance abuse and mental health treatment. There is widespread evidence across jurisdictions which suggests that a focus on rehabilitation, and not longer prison sentences, is what reduces overall crime levels and makes communities safer. It also makes economic sense. The chief inspector of prisons, Charlie Taylor, made clear in his most recent annual report in September 2024 that a fundamental reorientation of prisons towards rehabilitation is needed in order to reduce overall crime levels. The Howard League for Penal Reform has also welcomed the proposals in the sentencing review. Concerns Victims groups have raised concerns about the risk of sex offenders or domestic abusers being released early, even under the current regime. The review recommends strengthening protections for victims, for example, by expanding specialist domestic abuse courts and tagging for all perpetrators of violence against women and girls. More controversially, it recommends increasing trials into the use of voluntary chemical castration for serious sex offenders. The justice secretary is reported to be considering the use of mandatory chemical castration. Other questions remain around the implementation of the reforms, not least how they would be funded in the current economic climate. The chief inspector of probation, Martin Jones, has warned that without better funding and other reforms in the probation service, the proposals in the Gauke review would be 'catastrophic'. The review recommends investing in the strained probation service, and bringing in third-sector organisations to support it. These are ambitious reforms that would require a considerable investment in the probation service, prisons, community rehabilitation and technology. There are also emerging human rights concerns about the adoption of advanced AI by probation services, as is recommended by the review. Ultimately, there is little evidence to suggest that fewer prisoners and shorter sentences will make communities less safe. It is ineffective rehabilitation leading to reoffending which comes at a considerable social and economic cost.
The Guardian
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Texas model cuts costs and prison numbers
We welcome Gaby Hinsliff's call for 'a more enlightened approach to cutting crime' (Republican Texas is a surprising model for solving the UK's prison crisis – but it just might work, 16 May). To achieve this and deal with the problem of prison overcrowding, we do not need to build more prisons. Community sentences require more resources so they can constructively challenge offending behaviour while keeping convicted individuals in touch with their responsibilities to families and communities. For those in prison, this would also allow for the application of the Texas model – a promising form of prison reform that is not only cost-saving but has also reduced crime and recidivism rates in that state. Its success lies significantly in prioritising incarceration for violent offences. It also emphasises in-prison and community-based treatment programmes for non-violent offenders, many of whose crimes intersect with substance abuse and/or mental health problems. Several other US states have found the Texas model fits with their wish to curtail prison numbers without jeopardising public VanstoneEmeritus professor of criminology and criminal justice, Swansea UniversityAnita Kalunta-CrumptonProfessor of administration of justice, Texas Southern UniversityPhilip Priestley Independent scholar As welcome as it is that the justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, has acknowledged the prison crisis, her solutions treat symptoms, not causes (Jail time for recalled offenders to be limited to free up prison places, 14 May). Limiting recall periods to 28 days may provide temporary relief, but the admission that prisons in England and Wales will still be 9,000 places short by 2028 exposes the futility of building our way out of this crisis. We cannot continue this cycle of emergency releases and quick fixes. The government must prioritise evidence-based alternatives: community sentences, electronic monitoring and intensive supervision programmes that cost less and reduce reoffending more effectively than prison. Most importantly, we need investment in prevention – addressing the social determinants of crime through education, mental health services and employment support. The current approach is both financially unsustainable and morally StoddartProject coordinator, the Oswin Project Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
