‘Completely unacceptable’ that mistaken prisoner releases have gone up under Labour, minister says – UK politics live

Mistaken prisoner releases have increased under the Labour government, with an average of 22 individuals wrongly released from prisons each month in England and Wales, up from an average of 17 during the previous administration. This rise is described as "completely unacceptable" by Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, who stated that even one mistaken release is too many. The government attributes the problem to an "antiquated" paper-based system within the Prison Service, developed in the 1980s, and has inherited a prison system that is nearly full to capacity. To address the issue, Justice Secretary David Lammy is appointing Dame Lynne Owens, former director of the National Crime Agency, to oversee improvements, including overhauling the paper-based system, building new prisons, and implementing additional checks. Justice Secretary David Lammy faced scrutiny for his handling of a recent mistaken release of Brahim Kaddour-Cherif from HMP Wandsworth, a category B prison that is overcrowded and facing security concerns... download the app to read more