The early release scheme has been linked to a “historically high” level of recalls after offenders breached their conditions.
Criminals were picked up in supercars after being released early from prison (Image: Phil Harris)
Nearly 40,000 prisoners have been let out early, leading to warnings that “crime pays” under Labour.
A staggering 38,042 benefited from Keir Starmer‘s early release scheme between September 2024 and June 2025.
This includes 346 criminals jailed for more than 14 years and 1,403 locked up for between seven to 10 years.
They are amongst almost 6,200 sentenced to more than four years behind bars let out early.
And the early release scheme has been linked to a “historically high” level of recalls after offenders breached their conditions.
Ministry of Justice data published on Thursday shows there were 11,041 recalls to custody in April to June 2025 of offenders who had breached the conditions of their release, up 13% on the equivalent period in 2024 (9,782) and a jump of 62% on the same period in 2023 (6,814).
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick said: “Under this Government, crime pays. Already 38,000 offenders have been released early – and soon tens of thousands will avoid prison altogether.
“Criminals will be licking their lips, free to offend and wreck our communities all over again.”
Former minister Esther McVey added: “These figures not only show how soft on crime Labour really are, but also highlights their hypocrisy.
“They criticise prisons for letting out offenders early by mistake whilst at the same time intentionally releasing tens of thousands of offenders onto our streets.
“Their sentencing bill will ensure even more are let out even earlier or not sent to prison at all.
“All of this is making the streets less safe for the rest of us. Labour cannot be trusted to be tough on crime or criminals.”
The early release scheme was launched on September 10 last year, just days after the prison population reached a record high of 88,521.
It allows eligible prisoners to be released after serving only 40% of their fixed-term sentence, rather than the usual 50%.
And some 38,042 have been released early under the scheme.
This included 4,358 in June, the second-highest monthly total since October 2024, when ministers feared a collapse in law and order, with prisons unable to take in new convicts.
The Ministry of Justice has defended the early release scheme (Image: Getty)
A record number of offenders – 1,850 – were ordered to serve part of their sentences at home in June, Ministry of Justice figures show. In total, 10,835 have been allowed to finish their sentences in the comforts of their own home under the Home Detention Curfew Scheme.
An additional 25,000 have been let out with “conditional releases”.
Officials warned in May that male prisons were on track to hit zero capacity by November this year.
Some 10,879 of the 38,042 early releases (28.6%) were serving sentences of six months or under, with a further 5,241 (13.8%) serving sentences of between six and 12 months.
Commenting on the latest release figures, a Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said the Government took “decisive action to stop our prisons from collapsing” after inheriting a prison system “in crisis”.
“Public protection is our number one priority. That is why offenders out on licence face strict conditions such as exclusion zones and being tagged, and they can be brought back to prison if they break these rules,” the spokeswoman added.
The figures also come as ministers have dealt with the fallout of a jail blunder this week after Epping migrant sex offender Hadush Kebatu was accidentally freed from prison instead of being sent to an immigration detention centre last Friday.
Chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor said the mistake was symptomatic of chaos within the prison system, and that the amount of change in jails, such as different rules for early releases has been “making life difficult for prisons”.
He added that “with any luck” once the Bill is introduced and the new changes are established “this problem will go away”.
Under separate Labour plans to release the prison capacity, killers and rapists will be let out early, while 43,000 criminals will avoid jail altogether.
Most convicts will be tagged and electronically monitored as ministers try to avoid a repeat of the prison overcrowding crisis.
The majority of criminals will be let out after just a third of their sentence.
They will spend another third under house arrest and will only then be put on licence and let into the community.
Criminals sentenced to more than four years behind bars will be let out after serving just half of their jail term, while punishments of less than 12 months will be abolished in most cases.
Only the most extreme offenders will be refused the right to leave prison at the halfway point
Criminals will, for the first time, be tagged before they leave prison in a bid to prevent them wreaking havoc in communities.
