UK Justice Secretary Signals Early Parole for Serious Offenders to Tackle Prison Overcrowding

Shabana Mahmood considers controversial sentencing reforms, including a Texas-style incentive system, as overcrowding pushes prisons to over 99% capacity despite new facilities like HMP Millsike.

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has suggested early parole for serious offenders, such as those convicted of manslaughter, to address the UK's prison overcrowding crisis.
HMP Millsike, a new 1,500-cell rehabilitation-focused prison in York, was opened to support long-term efforts to reduce reoffending and ease capacity pressures.
The government is exploring a Texas-style system rewarding good behavior with earlier parole, as part of a sentencing review led by former minister David Gauke, with recommendations expected in the coming months.
Mahmood emphasized that the most dangerous offenders, including murderers, will remain in prison under any proposed reforms.
Despite plans to build 14,000 new prison places by 2031, Mahmood acknowledged that construction alone cannot resolve the crisis, and further emergency measures, such as early release schemes, remain possible.