Record number of prisoners 'freed early in error'

Prison bosses have freed a record number of prisoners by mistake, new data has revealed. 

The new figures revealed the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) released 87 people too early last year. 

And in one case, HMP Grendon in Buckinghamshire let the wrong prisoner out for a hospital visit because he and another inmate shared the same surname. 

A total of 308 people over the last five years have accidentally been freed too soon, the Telegraph reported. 

Of this number, at least 41 were serving sentences for violent crimes, while another seven were sex offenders and 21 were in prison on drugs charges. 

While the majority of accidental early releases are due to paperwork errors, at least seven people over the last five years have been released because guards were confused over the identities of prisoners. 

Kevin Moore, a retired detective chief superintendent, told the newspaper: 'This issue is worryingly becoming more and more frequent.

'I have a view that with anything that once is a mistake, more than once is downright carelessness. There should be fail safe checks put in place to ensure that these occurrences just don't happen.

'Such errors are putting the public at unnecessary risk and this is totally unacceptable when such incidents are completely avoidable.' 

It comes amid warnings that Britain's prison system could still run out of space despite a £10billion plan to build more prisons, alongside measures to hand out more community sentences. 

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood admitted that the estate would be full within three years even if ministers met their targets to create 14,000 extra places by 2031.

She insisted 'building alone is not enough' and that demand was 'rising faster than any supply could possibly catch up with'.

Prisons will run out of space despite the Government's building scheme, Shabana Mahmood has said.

In a round of interviews, she was repeatedly asked whether she could guarantee there would be no more early releases.

Ms Mahmood told Sky News that she was 'straining every sinew' to avoid making the controversial move again.

But she said other operational measures, such as more people on home detention curfew, could be used to stabilise the prison system.

Ms Mahmood also dodged on fears that new prisons could be sited on Green Belt land, regardless of local objections.

The extra capacity would bring the total number of spaces in England and Wales to just under 103,000. But forecasts published last week said the jail population will hit 100,800 in March 2029.

It is understood there will be a shortfall of 5,400 jail spaces by November 2027 - less than three years from now.

It remains unclear when the 14,000 spaces - a combination of four new prisons and additional houseblocks in existing jails - will be complete.

The shortfall will be met by the government's sentencing review, which will mean wider use of community punishments for criminals - including house arrest.