Process to control prisoner movements activated

Hundreds of people have been admitted to prisons across the north of England in recent weeks following decisive action by the Government to tackle violence on our streets. This has exacerbated long-standing capacity problems in our prisons, which have been operating at critical levels for the past few years, often at less than 1% capacity.

To cope with this pressure, HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) has reactivated an existing emergency mechanism, Operation Early Dawn, to provide additional monitoring of prisoner transfers between police, courts and prisons.

This means that the offenders will not be summoned to a district court until it has been confirmed that a prison cell is available for them in the event of pre-trial detention. They will be held at a police station until they are summoned to court.

The activation of Operation Early Dawn will help to address short-term prison capacity pressures in a few regions. This measure is designed to ensure that we always have enough prison space to incarcerate those who knowingly choose to break the law.

Prisons and Probation Minister Lord Timpson said:

We have inherited a justice system that is in crisis and is undergoing disruption, and we are therefore forced to take difficult but necessary decisions to keep it functioning.

But thanks to the hard work of our dedicated staff and partners, we have been able to create additional places in prisons and have now launched Operation Early Dawn to address the pressures being felt in some parts of the country.

Police have assured the public that this will not affect their ability to arrest criminals and that bail will not be granted to anyone who poses a danger to the public.

National Police Chiefs' Council detention officer, Deputy Chief Constable Nev Kemp, said:

We work closely with partners in the criminal justice system to manage demand on the system and keep the public safe.

Police will continue to arrest anyone who needs to be arrested to protect public safety, including policing protests and events, and will ensure that people are arrested as expected.

The Government has already taken a number of measures to increase capacity in response to the violent unrest, making hundreds of prison places available, including a new accommodation block at HMP Stocken, the repurposed HMP Cookham Wood and accelerated maintenance work at other prisons.

In the first week after the formation of the new government, measures were also taken to address the long-standing capacity problems in our prisons and difficult but necessary changes to certain prison sentences were announced.

These changes will come into force in early September and will give the Probation Service the time it needs to release offenders safely, so that everyone has somewhere to live and is supported in finding work upon their release from prison.

Operation Early Dawn involves prison services, courts and police conducting an operational assessment every morning and throughout the day to enable defendants to be transferred from police cells to courts to ensure a safe place in the event of pre-trial detention.

In previous operations, Operation Early Dawn helped minimize disruption at bail hearings and manage the movement of prisoners throughout the courthouse.

Operation Early Dawn is intended to address capacity problems in the following areas:

• North East and Yorkshire
• Cumbria and Lancashire
• Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire.

The Government will keep this measure under review and will activate or deactivate it as necessary. Ongoing Crown Court proceedings will not be directly affected and prisoners held for Crown Court hearings will be brought to court and returned to prison as normal.

Notes for editors

As part of a long-term plan to address the capacity crisis, the Government is temporarily reducing the proportion of certain sentences served in prison from 50% to 40%. These measures, which will come into force in September and October, include important safeguards and exemptions to protect the public, and clear release plans to safely place prisoners back into society.

Punishments for terrorism, sexual offences and serious violent offences with a prison sentence of four years or more are automatically excluded. In an important difference to the End of Custody Supervised Licence program, early release is also excluded for offenders serving time in prison for crimes related to domestic violence. These include:

• Stalking offenses
• Controlling or compulsive behavior in an intimate or family relationship
• non-fatal strangulation and suffocation
• Violation of restraining orders, contact bans and protection orders in cases of domestic violence

Anyone released on parole will be subject to strict supervision by the probation service, which may include electronic ankle bracelets and curfews. If they breach the conditions, they may be re-arrested.

The new rules also do not apply to most serious criminals who have either already served two-thirds of their sentence behind bars or whose release is being decided by the parole board.

In addition to the changes to early release, the government will build the prisons the country needs, review sentencing and the criminal justice system, and hire an additional thousand probation officers.