Burnham Reviews Early Release Scheme After Harper Outcry

Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s decision to review the early release of around 6,000 serious offenders under the Sentencing Act has sent shockwaves through families already scarred by violent crime and through a prison system that has run out of room. The move directly challenges a policy introduced under Keir Starmer’s government to prevent prisons in England and Wales reaching zero capacity by November 2026.

Burnham Orders Review of Sentencing Act Releases After Harper Family Backlash

London, UK – 23 July 2026 — Prime Minister Andy Burnham has instructed Justice Secretary Alex Norris to examine plans that would allow roughly 6,000 offenders, including killers, rapists and sex offenders, to leave prison from September 2026 under the Sentencing Act passed earlier this year.

The Sentencing Act and the Overcrowding Crisis

The Sentencing Act, enacted under Keir Starmer’s government, lowers the release point so some prisoners can be freed after serving just one third of their sentence. Officials designed the measure to tackle the prison overcrowding crisis that would otherwise leave England and Wales with no capacity by November 2026. A government official stated there is very little wriggle room because it takes seven years to build a prison. Prison population in England and Wales doubled between 1992 and 2012, and tens of thousands of inmates have already been released since 2024, with around 40,000 freed early under Starmer’s government. The Act also directs courts to stop handing out short prison sentences under 12 months except in specific circumstances.

Ministry of Justice data reveal that the adult prison population in England and Wales stood at 88,225 in June 2026, up 3 per cent on the previous year, with 12,400 places currently classified as “unusable” owing to maintenance failures. Projections from the Prison Reform Trust indicate that without adjustment the system would hit absolute capacity by mid-November, forcing courts to suspend remands. Scotland’s separate estate, holding 7,950 inmates against a design capacity of 7,300, faces parallel pressures but operates under distinct early-release rules introduced by the Scottish Government in 2023. Northern Ireland’s prison population of 1,875 remains below capacity yet shares cross-border concerns over offender management.

Historical Context of Prison Overcrowding

England and Wales have wrestled with chronic overcrowding since the early 1990s, when the prison population first exceeded 45,000. Successive governments responded with a building programme that added 20,000 places yet failed to keep pace with sentencing inflation. The 2019 Conservative manifesto promised 10,000 additional cells; only 3,200 have opened. Starmer’s administration inherited a system already running at 98 per cent occupancy, prompting the emergency measures now under Burnham’s scrutiny.

PC Andrew Harper’s Case and the Harper Family Response

PC Andrew Harper was killed in August 2019 when he was dragged to his death behind a getaway car in Sulhamstead, Berkshire. He was 28 and had married only a month earlier. Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, both 17 at the time, were passengers in the car and received 13-year sentences for manslaughter; they could qualify for early release under the new Sentencing Act. Driver Henry Long was jailed for 16 years and is not eligible. PC Harper’s widow Lissie Harper successfully campaigned for Harper’s Law, which introduced harsher sentences for the manslaughter of emergency workers on duty. She described the possibility of early release for the offenders as “deplorable”. PC Harper’s mother said the potential early release felt like an “insult”.

Political Reactions and Internal Tensions

New Justice Secretary Alex Norris is working directly with Burnham on the review. Former Justice Secretary David Lammy had warned that without the early release scheme there would be “no capacity” across prisons in England and Wales by November. Whitehall insiders note that altering the scheme now contradicts Lammy’s earlier warnings. Defence Secretary Wes Streeting apologised after being caught on microphone making comments about early prisoner release.

Burnham’s intervention marks a deliberate distancing from the Starmer legacy of rapid, capacity-driven releases. While Starmer framed the Sentencing Act as an unavoidable administrative necessity, Burnham presents the review as a restoration of public confidence in sentencing. Labour backbenchers from marginal seats in the North and Midlands have privately welcomed the shift, fearing that perceived leniency could erode support among traditional voters. Yet Treasury officials caution that any reversal risks renewed capital expenditure on emergency accommodation, estimated at £400 million annually.

Regional Impacts Across the United Kingdom

England’s 117 prisons account for the bulk of the projected shortfall, with London and the South East operating at 102 per cent capacity. Wales, with six establishments, reports acute pressure at HMP Parc and Swansea, where 180 inmates are held two to a cell designed for one. Scotland’s distinct legal framework allows greater use of home detention curfews, yet the Scottish National Party has criticised Westminster for exporting policy failures north of the border. Northern Ireland’s smaller system has absorbed 47 transferred prisoners under the scheme, prompting concerns from victims’ groups in Belfast about cross-jurisdictional transparency.

Expert Caution and Broader System Pressures

Andrea Coomber of the Howard League for Penal Reform urged caution on abandoning the scheme, highlighting the risk of returning to the same overcrowding that forced previous emergency measures. The review comes as the government continues to manage the legacy of releasing around 40,000 prisoners early since 2024.

Penal Reform Trust director Peter Dawson warned that abrupt changes could trigger a “cliff-edge” of recalls, overwhelming probation services already stretched by 15 per cent vacancy rates. Meanwhile, the Prison Officers’ Association has called for ring-fenced funding to recruit 2,500 additional staff by 2028, arguing that early releases merely defer rather than resolve systemic strain.

Simultaneous Domestic Policy Announcement

On the same day Burnham announced the review, he also confirmed that bus fares in England would be capped at £2, linking criminal justice reform with everyday cost-of-living measures affecting commuters across the country.

The Bottom Line — What Comes Next

The review will test whether the Sentencing Act can be adjusted without triggering the November 2026 capacity crisis, while families such as the Harpers watch to see if their calls for tighter restrictions on serious offenders are heeded. Decisions made in the coming months will shape both prison numbers and public confidence in the justice system for years to come. By Erica Thornton, Staff Writer