Sir Keir Starmer is facing mounting pressure over an overcrowding crisis in UK prisons, with calls for the Government to deport thousands more foreign criminals. The number of prisoners has hit a six-month high, despite Labour’s controversial decision to release thousands of inmates last year in a desperate bid to ease pressure on the system.
New figures from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) show that the prison population has reached 87,556, leaving just 1,284 spaces available. With Prisons Minister James Timpson ruling out further early releases, the Government’s only hope of preventing total gridlock lies in sentencing reforms designed to send fewer people to jail, reported the Express.
