Thames Valley Police Commissioner raises alarm over Government's early prison release proposals
Thames Valley’s Police and Crime Commissioner has warned the Sentencing Act will lead to more criminals reoffending because fewer offenders will be sent to prison.
Matthew Barber said the changes would mean more offenders would be managed in the community rather than sent to prison, increasing the risk of repeat offending.
Speaking at a meeting of the Thames Valley Police and Crime Panel, he said: “Undoubtedly we have challenges around prison spaces, that’s undeniable.
“But the outcome of the Sentencing Act will mean fewer criminals going to prison, more being managed in the community and more reoffending of those sorts of offences around shoplifting.”
High Wycombe records approximately 1,000 shoplifting offences per year, making up about 11.4 per cent of all crime in the town, according to UK police data.
The Sentencing Act, which has received Royal Assent, will grip the prison crisis on the brink of collapse, the Government says. Implementation will be phased over the next two years, with changes to how long offenders stay in prison when they are recalled expected to begin in the coming months, and the earned release model to be rolled out in the Autumn.
Sentencing minister Jake Richards said: “Urgent, bold action was needed to keep the public safe. “These reforms will make sure prisons never run out of space again and dangerous offenders are kept off our streets, while putting victims first with much tougher punishments for offenders outside jail.”
Analysis from specialist prisons publication, Inside Time, shows that an estimated 6,000 inmates will be granted earlier than planned releases from September 2. These releases will be split across 10 monthly dates.