It comes after Andy Burnham paused plans to release prisoners early in September to ease overcrowding in jails
Rape, serious child sex and grooming offences will be barred from the upcoming changes to prison sentences, it has been announced today (August 3).
The Prime Minister has blocked cuts to sentences for rape, serious child sex and other grooming offences ‘to keep the public as safe as possible’.
It comes after Andy Burnham paused plans to release prisoners early in September to ease overcrowding in jails. The scheme will now be delayed until October.
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Mr Burnham said he “wanted to go even further”, but that it is not possible without the prison system collapsing and putting the public “at much greater risk”.
However, he assured the public that offenders will face tighter community supervision, including new GPS monitoring for rapists to restrict movements.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said: “Keeping the public safe is my top priority. That’s why I asked for an urgent review of the prisoner release scheme. I fully understand the anger, anxiety and distress that’s been caused.
“I’ve heard that loud and clear. That’s why we’re making significant changes: offenders who have been sentenced for rape, serious child sex offences and other grooming offences will be excluded from the changes.
“I want to be honest – I wanted to go even further as I know there will still be concerns about other offenders having their sentence shortened. But it’s not possible without the prison system reaching capacity and collapsing, which would put public safety at much greater risk.
“That’s why we will also be introducing much tougher community measures. There will be a presumption that all offenders are tagged, longer periods of supervision and tough new rules, including restriction zones for offenders.
“As a country, we haven’t invested in the prison estate when we should have, going back over a decade. This has created an unacceptable situation, with our adult male prisons now at 98 per cent capacity. For too long, the problems facing our prison system have been ignored – and it’s the victims who have been paying the price.
“That is not good enough. My government will deliver the fastest prison building programme since the Victorian era and do what’s necessary to fix the prison crisis.”
The decision comes after Mr Burnham listened to ‘victims’ concerns’, resulting in rape and serious child sex offences, including vile grooming gang offences, now being blocked from the upcoming sentencing changes – meaning these offenders will see no change to their custodial sentence.
The changes mean rape and child sexual offences will be added to the exclusions that were already in place for 18,000 offenders, including those who have been found by a court to be the most dangerous or anyone serving a life sentence.
Under changes in the Sentencing Act, some 6,000 offenders were set to be let out of prison in September after serving a third of their sentence – rather than half – in a bid to ease prison overcrowding.
Prisoners serving longer sentences of four years or more would be eligible for release at the halfway point of their term, rather than at two-thirds as had previously been the case.
The changes were due to be phased in, beginning with prisoners of less than 575 days.
The Government has said that, after listening to victims’ concerns, rapists and child sexual offenders will not be eligible for the sentencing changes.
These will be added to the exclusions already in place for 18,000 offenders, including those who have been found by a court to be the most dangerous or anyone serving a life sentence.
The Government has also announced a new package of victim support, backed by £10 million, to provide better trauma-informed contact.
A new national helpline will also be established and efforts made to contact all affected victims to offer information and support.
Mr Burnham added that the Government will deliver “the fastest prison building programme since the Victorian era”, aiming to create 14,000 new prison places by 2031.
The Prime Minister has also asked Justice Secretary Alex Norris to look at how the UK can remove more foreign offenders and faster, review Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences and free up space in women’s prisons.
Justice Secretary Alex Norris: “The Prime Minister and I have reviewed these reforms, listened to the concerns and gone further to protect victims.
“These are decisions no Minister would ever want to take but it is right these sickening crimes are excluded from these reforms. Victims will also have access to better support and reassurance that offenders leaving prison face tougher supervision and punishment.”
The changes also introduce a new progression model which will end automatic release for badly behaved offenders. Those who break the rules or are violent behind bars face spending 100% of their sentence locked up.



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