Andy Burnham was charged last night with endangering the public over his latest change to the prison parole scheme.
The Prime Minister is facing a new backlash after changing policy to keep PC Andrew Harper’s killers behind bars but opening cell doors to hundreds of dangerous offenders.
In yet another reversal of the controversial plan, Mr Burnham said anyone convicted of unlawful killing will be excluded.
It means Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole, who were convicted of the officer’s manslaughter in 2020, will no longer be eligible for parole next year, much to the relief of PC Harper’s family and police leaders.
But to make the change, ministers are finding extra cell space by releasing prisoners serving indefinite prison sentences for public protection sentences (IPPs) – imposed between 2005 and 2012 on offenders deemed to pose a significant risk to the public.
Current and former ministers warned that the solution could pose a much greater risk to the public, with many IPP prisoners considered too dangerous to release.
One of Burnham’s own senior ministers condemned the plans, saying: ‘The Prime Minister has been too focused on the media response rather than on actual risks.
“He has bowed to public pressure over the response to PC Harper’s killers and failed to target the actual high-risk, high-harm perpetrators.
Andy Burnham tells the BBC that PC Harper’s killers will not be eligible for parole
Mr Burnham speaks to TV personality Georgia Harrison about the possibility of creating Georgia law
Ms Harrison pictured at the BAFTA Television Awards at the Royal Festival Hall in London on May 10
‘Is it likely that those who committed manslaughter will come out of prison and commit manslaughter again? No. But I can guarantee you that the obsessed stalker or domestic abuser will come out and relentlessly pursue his victim again.”
Mr Burnham also faced criticism from campaigners who said the exceptions to the scheme did not go far enough as persistent offenders, such as domestic abusers and stalkers, would still be released early, putting victims at risk.
About 5,000 prisoners would be released early from next month under plans to reduce prison overcrowding, up from 6,000 after ministers intervened to free rapists and serious child sex offenders.
Yesterday, Mr Burnham narrowed the plan even further, blocking all those convicted of manslaughter, death by dangerous driving, indecent assault and grooming gang offenders.
He said: ‘We will now jail not only offenders serving a prison sentence for indecent assault, but also those in prison for manslaughter and death by dangerous driving.
‘This means that the sentences of the terrible criminals responsible for the murder of PC Andrew Harper will not be shortened.’
Dame Nicole Jacobs, Domestic Violence Commissioner for England and Wales, said: “For victims of domestic abuse across the country, this announcement will provide no reassurance.
‘While it is good to see more dangerous offenders being exempted from this scheme, I remain deeply concerned about the number of abusers who are still eligible for parole.
Thames Valley Police mugshots of Jessie Cole (left) and Albert Bowers who are no longer eligible for parole
Thames Valley police officer, PC Andrew Harper, was killed in the line of duty on August 15, 2019
Bowers and Cole pictured leaving Reading Magistrates’ Court after a hearing in 2019
“This decision does not change the fact that victims and survivors will still be forced to take action to protect themselves from dangerous abusers because the government and our criminal justice system cannot.”
Former Justice Minister David Gauke warned that the release of IPP prisoners poses ‘much greater risks’, adding: ‘The reality is that the remaining IPPs are in prison for good reasons.
“They have been assessed [repeatedly] as high risk. I looked at their disciplinary records in prison and in many cases it was clear why they had not been released.
‘Caution is still advised. In terms of public protection, releasing IPPs poses much greater risks than the categories excluded from the early release scheme.”
Tory spokesman Nick Timothy said: “They are among the most dangerous people in prison. Will they all be released? Just a few? How many? And on what time scale? What about those who would have received a life sentence had the IPP not existed?”
He added: “This is Andy Burnham’s fifth parole position in less than six weeks since he became Prime Minister. There are serious questions about what he is now proposing.
‘It is clear that Andy Burnham’s early release policy will put the British public at risk. It appears he is trying to stop the release of one group of dangerous criminals by releasing another group of dangerous criminals.”
Sir Robert Buckland, former Justice Secretary, said: ‘I know first-hand the crisis facing the criminal justice system in Britain, but changing the parole scheme from favoring one group of dangerous criminals to another group of dangerous criminals does very little to protect the public.
Richard Lloyd was convicted at Coventry Crown Court in May 2008. At the time of sentencing he was 26 years old
Tracey Connelly, the mother of Baby P, who died after months of abuse
Nicholas Bidar became the first IPP prisoner whose parole was made public after new laws came into effect
“While Mr Burnham focuses on winning a PR battle, today’s announcement will still put decent, law-abiding citizens at risk. The government must get a grip and explain exactly how and when it will increase prison capacity, which is the only way to end this crisis once and for all.”
The Prime Minister also met revenge porn campaigner and former Love Island star Georgia Harrison to discuss her campaign for ‘Georgia’s Law’.
Stephen Bear was jailed in 2023 for sharing a sex tape of Ms Harrison on his OnlyFans page. But after his release from prison, Bear breached his order by posting derogatory comments about Ms Harrison online.
She is calling for a ‘kill switch’ on social media so that posts are deleted while they are being reviewed.
IPP sentences were abolished in 2012, but the abolition was not retroactive, leaving many IPP prisoners behind bars as they cannot be released until the Parole Board is satisfied that they no longer need to be incarcerated for reasons of public safety.
As of June 30, 856 IPP prisoners were behind bars. Eight in ten of them have served at least ten years longer than the minimum term for which they can apply for parole.
A further 1,415 prisoners have been recalled after receiving IPP sentences.
A cross-party monitoring group will be established to investigate the IPP system. Mr Burnham said spaces will also be created by deporting foreign prisoners.
Thames Valley Police boss Jason Hogg welcomed the assurance that Bowers and Cole will remain behind bars.
But he said many police leaders remain concerned about plans to release offenders early and jail fewer criminals by scrapping shorter prison sentences.
He described a “criminal justice system in crisis” and warned that forces would have to shift resources from other police priorities to tackle offenders released into the community.
Bowers and Cole were passengers in the car that dragged PC Harper to his death after he tried to stop a gang from stealing a quad bike in Sulhamstead, Berkshire, in 2019.
Aileen O’Connor, the chairman of the Thames Valley Police Federation, started a petition that attracted more than a million signatures to keep them in prison.
She said: ‘We are pleased that the government – despite what was, frankly, initial reluctance – ultimately listened, saw sense and made the right decision to keep these thugs behind bars.’
