Labour’s plans to abolish remaining imprisonment for public protection sentences have come under renewed scrutiny, with the Conservatives warning that hundreds of offenders convicted of sexual and violent crimes could ultimately be released.
The government has pledged to end the remaining IPP sentences, which have no fixed end date and were abolished for new offences in 2012. Critics of the policy argue that prisoners who remain behind bars have already served significantly longer than the minimum tariffs originally imposed by courts.
Timothy said: “Labour wants to abolish IPP sentences, but this would mean up to 700 dangerous sex offenders being let loose on the streets.
“Two in three IPP prisoners are there for violent or sexual crimes, and they have not been released because the Parole Board says it is not safe to do so.”
He told the Mail: “Labour must rule out releasing these dangerous sex offenders, and instead focus on building more prisons, expanding capacity, and maximising the space that we have.”
The IPP system was introduced in 2005 for offenders considered to pose a continuing risk to the public. Although it was abolished for new offences in 2012, thousands of prisoners sentenced under the regime have remained in custody after serving their original minimum tariffs.
Of the 700 prisoners cited in the criticism, 379 have never been released, while 321 have subsequently returned to prison after committing new offences or breaching parole conditions.
The wider population of IPP prisoners includes hundreds convicted of violent offences. Figures cited in the debate show 791 offenders were convicted of crimes against individuals, including grievous bodily harm and assault.
A further 522 were convicted of robbery, 77 of arson or criminal damage and 65 of weapons offences.
The government argues that the legacy of IPP sentences has left prisoners serving significantly longer terms than originally envisaged.
Mr Norris told MPs earlier this month that the government intended to abolish all remaining IPP sentences.
He said: “They were rightly abolished a decade ago, but offenders are still locked up for far longer than envisaged, often for crimes that, if committed today, would see them spend much less time in jail. Of those who have never been released, 99 per cent are beyond the tariff imposed by the court, and 80 per cent have served 10 years or more beyond it.
“The number of IPP offenders has been reducing, but the Prime Minister and I want to go further. We will soon bring forward legislation to end the sentence, once and for all, by the end of this Parliament.”
The dispute comes after a series of changes to Labour’s wider prison-release plans following political and public pressure over the treatment of serious offenders.
Mr Burnham initially moved to exclude rapists and other serious sex offenders from the programme, in an effort to address concerns over public protection.
The continuing debate highlights the difficult balance facing ministers: how to resolve the legacy of a sentence that was abolished more than a decade ago while maintaining safeguards around offenders whom the Parole Board has judged unsafe to release.
For Labour, the challenge is to demonstrate that ending IPP sentences does not amount to automatic release, while opponents are seeking assurances that offenders convicted of serious violent and sexual crimes will not be released without appropriate risk assessments and safeguards.
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