Shorouk Express
Criminals could be banned from pubs, sports grounds and social events under plans being considered to free up prison spaces, a minister has suggested.
Courts minister Sarah Sackman said the bans, as well as mandatory work for offenders, were “very much part of the mix” amid an ongoing government review of prison sentences.
The review, chaired by Tory former justice secretary David Gauke, was launched in October to consider ways to punish offenders outside of prisons to ease the overcrowding crisis.
It is taking ideas from foreign jurisdictions such as Texas, where authorities have relied on good behaviour credits for early release schemes, as well as considering home detention curfews and sobriety tags.
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And Ms Sackman confirmed ministers are considering proposals drawn up by the Bar Council of England and Wales to prevent offenders from attending social events.
Speaking to The Guardian, she said: “The Leveson review [into criminal courts] is running alongside David Gauke’s review into sentencing, which is looking at the issue of prisons, at the question of punishment outside of prisons, and how we reduce reoffending.
“The sorts of suggestions that you refer to are very much part of the mix.
“Do we need to make mandatory work part of the picture? All of that will be considered by David Gauke’s sentencing review.”
At the end of last month, Ministry of Justice (MoJ) figures showed there were 87,199 prisoners in England and Wales, the highest figure since the government’s emergency October early release scheme.
As well as the ongoing sentencing review, ministers have promised to find 14,000 cell spaces in jails by 2031 and cut reoffending.
And the government is speeding up the deportation of foreign criminals using a crack squad of specialist staff across the prison estate to free up spaces in overcrowded jails.
As well as overcrowded prisons, ministers are grappling with a staggering 73,105 backlog of court cases.
A report on Tuesday warned that the record levels of crown court delays are deepening the trauma of victims and making many feel justice is “out of reach”.
And parliament’s Public Accounts Committee on Tuesday raised concerns ministers had “simply accepted” the record-high crown court backlog will continue to grow and it will wait for the results of the Leveson Review before planning changes to tackle it.
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The major review led by Sir Brian Leveson is expected to report on reforms to the court system in the spring.
Ms Sackman lashed out at the committee, adding that if the “members who formed part of the previous government had done anything like what this government is doing, we wouldn’t be in the position we’re in today”.
Justice secretary Shabana Mahmood on Wednesday said judges will sit collectively for 110,000 days in the next year, 4,000 more than allocated for the previous period, to help victims see justice done faster.
