2,500 sex offenders to be freed in UK under Labour’s plan to solve overcrowded prisons, say Conservatives

The Conservative Party has warned that around 2,500 rapists and paedophiles will be freed early in September under the Labour government's plan to tackle overcrowding in British jails, according to The Telegraph.

These sex offenders will include more than 100 rapists sentenced to more than 15 years in prison.

The pushback against the planned release of thousands of convicts to free up space in overcrowded jails could prove to be the first major test for Andy Burnham, who is due to take over as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on Monday.

The Telegraph has reported that Burnham is reviewing how rapists and child groomers could be exempted from early release.

Under plans floated by the outgoing PM Sir Keir Starmer's government, even serious criminals, including murderers, rapists, and child groomers, will be eligible for release halfway through their sentences rather than after serving two-thirds as long as they have not breached any serious rules during their time in prison. Prisoners convicted of less serious crimes will be eligible for release after serving a third of their sentence.

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Overall, around 5,000 convicts are expected to be freed in September under the scheme, including around 2,500 sex offenders.

While Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy has defended the scheme, arguing that British jails would be 100 per cent full within just six months without the scheduled release of convicts in September, the Opposition and survivors have urged the government to exclude sex offenders from the early-release programme.

Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy has accused the government of continuing to "defend the indefensible" with its arguments in favour of the scheme.

Referring to a motion moved in Parliament earlier this month, Timothy said Parliament had acted to stop the scheme and that Burnham must "as his first act adopt the Conservatives' draft legislation to prevent this disaster and keep sex offenders behind bars".

Earlier this month, the Conservatives moved an amendment to exempt any criminal convicted of a sexual offence, including rape and grooming, or convicted of the attempt, conspiracy, or incitement to commit such offences, from early release under the scheme.