Police fear further action to tackle prison overcrowding will leave them ‘unable to make arrests’ if Operation Brinker is triggered by Labour amid influx of convicted rioters _ Hieuuk
Police have warned the Government may need to introduce further emergency measures to tackle the UK’s prison overcrowding crisis which could leave forces ‘unable to make arrests’.
Senior officers believe there is a risk that the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) may have to go beyond the current measures – known as Operation Early Dawn – and bring in the contingency plan Operation Brinker.
Operation Brinker would mean bringing in a ‘one-in, one-out system’ whereby the prison service would have to report on how many places it had available each day.
Defendants would be held in police cells for longer than 24 hours and they could not be summoned to a magistrates’ court until a space in prison becomes available, if they are remanded into custody.
As a result, suspects could be driven around the country in secure fans to find a free cell.
Labour triggered Operation Early Dawn in the North of England this week in the wake of the recent riots in towns and cities.
The Government said its ‘decisive action to tackle violent thuggery on our streets’ had ‘exacerbated longstanding capacity issues in our prisons’.
Since taking office, Labour has also cut the proportion of a sentence inmates must serve behind bars from 50 per cent to 40 per cent.
The temporary move – due to start on 10 September – is expected to result in 5,500 offenders being released in September and October.
But the Telegraph reported officers have said it is touch-and-go as to whether the early release scheme will come in time to avoid Operation Brinker.
One officer told the newspaper that Operation Brinker would have an immediate impact on policing and potentially cripple the justice system within days.
Phil Jones, custody lead for the Police Federation, said using station cells to hold suspects for longer than a day would impact officers’ ability to make arrests.
The MoJ said 215 people involved in the recent rioting across the UK have so far been sentenced, adding more pressure on the prison service. Pictured: Police being targeted in the Sunderland riots
Senior officers have warned the Government may need to bring in further emergency measures known as Operation Brinker. Pictured: Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer
Operation Brinker would mean bringing in a ‘one-in, one-out system’ whereby the prison service would have to report on how many places it had available each day
He told The Telegraph: ‘If we have a sustained period of time where prisoners are in police cells, then there could be a situation moving forward where we don’t have the capacity in the system to do business as usual.
‘If you cannot get people to the courts, to remand hearings, you are going to have that blockage and you cannot move prisoners to where you need to. We will have to see over the next 10 days whether it impacts on business as usual.’
The Ministry of Justice believes it will be able to get through to September 10 without introducing Operation Brinker.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced plans to cut the proportion of the sentence inmates must serve behind bars from 50 per cent to 40 per cent.
The temporary move, which does not apply to those convicted of sex offences, terrorism, domestic abuse or some violent offences, is expected to result in 5,500 offenders being released in September and October.
A Ministry of Justice (MoJ) spokesman previously said everyone released will be ‘strictly monitored’ and face ‘tough licence conditions’, such as electronic tagging and curfews.
Labour triggered Operation Early Dawn in the North of England this week in the wake of the recent riots in towns and cities. Pictured: A prison guard walks through HMP Berwyn
Rioters took part in the mayhem that erupted in Bristol city centre on August 3 during the Enough is Enough demonstration (Pictured: Police detain a protestor)
Rioters were also seen trying to tip over a police van during the violence a few weeks ago
Operation Early Dawn was triggered after the riots that broke out across the country following the stabbing of three girls at a Taylor Swift dance class in Southport on July 29.
The attack was wrongly blamed on an Islamist migrant in a false theory spread through online misinformation.
Accused Axel Rudakubana, born in Cardiff to Christian parents from Rwanda, has been charged with three counts of murder, ten counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed weapon.
Following the tragedy, far-right activists began targeting mosques and accommodation for asylum seekers.
Violence broke out in cities across England and also in Northern Ireland – and has been followed by a hundreds of charges including for children as young as 12, while those arrested also include a 69-year-old accused of vandalism in Liverpool.
Following a large number of rioters being jailed over the past few weeks, Operation Early Dawn was activated (pictured: A police officer attempts to extinguish a wheelie bin that has been set alight by anti-migration protesters in Rotherham)
So far, 460 cases have been heard by magistrates, 327 have been remanded in custody and 215 rioters have been sentenced or are awaiting sentence.
Meanwhile, the probation service has been given a ‘fighting chance’ to try and deal with early release, the Chief Inspector of Probation said today.
Martin Jones told BBC Radio 4 Today programme: ‘When I heard the first news of the early release, my concern was how much time the probation service would have to prepare for that.
‘I was actually quite pleased they had about eight weeks, (which) isn’t very much time but I think it gave them a fighting chance to prepare for this.
‘On my inspection visits that take place regularly I have seen a huge a mount of work taking place. I would describe it as heroism by probation to try to ensure the best arrangements possible are in place.
‘But, of course, my job going forward will be to scrutinise how effective those plans have been and I won’t know the answer to that question until we start inspecting those cases.’
Mr Jones went on to say that staffing levels and excessive caseloads could be a problem for the probation service as it seeks to deal with the early releases.
He told the BBC: ‘We know that good probation practice keeps communities safe and reduces reoffending, but they need the staff and the resources to do that.
‘At the moment, I fear that the caseload is too high to do that well enough in all cases and that is something I think will require urgent attention going forward.’
He added: ‘The probation service doesn’t have the probation officers it needs to deliver its core caseload and therefore what you see is probation officers with excessive caseloads.
‘There is a limit therefore as to what you can properly do as a result of that.
‘If you are looking to release somebody from prison, a most important thing is to understand the risk that person represents.
‘Are they a high risk offender or are they a low risk offender? What are their needs? Do they have mental health difficulty? Do they have drug addiction problems?
‘If you do not understand that at the point that person is released, it’s a recipe for failure and quite often will result in recall to prison or increased reoffending.’
