Contributions
2,005 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorThe hon. Lady will know that absconding is a serious criminal offence, and that any defendant who commits this crime could face longer behind bars. This is of course a different…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorI am very grateful to my hon. Friend for all the work she is doing in her community. I recognise that there will be anxiety in her constituency as a result of high-profile cases…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorI am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question. She is absolutely right; we have to grip the system. I did that by chairing a performance board in the Department yesterday, and…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorThe hon. Member makes a good point. The system had got to a place where prisoners were not being released on Fridays. It is my understanding that that was relaxed, and I have…11 Nov 2025HANSARDHuman Rights LawsThe right hon. Gentleman, who is hugely experienced, will know that it is important that we do not do anything that might, for example, undermine the Good Friday agreement, in…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorMy hon. Friend puts it beautifully. I suspect that it is why the shadow Justice Secretary said last week that the state of the Prison Service has been unacceptable for a very long…11 Nov 2025HANSARDHuman Rights LawsThe hon. Gentleman is right; people are claiming the article 8 right in particular and using domestic law to thwart removal to their countries. That is why it is important for us…11 Nov 2025HANSARDHuman Rights LawsMy hon. Friend will know that, in relation to the debate that we had on exiting the European Union, all sorts of things were promised by many colleagues now on the Opposition…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorThe hon. Member knows that about 17 prisoners a day were released in error under the last Government. [ Official Report , 11 November 2025; Vol. 775, c. 43.] (Correction) He knows…11 Nov 2025HANSARDHuman Rights LawsMr Speaker, the whole House will know that I shall be making a statement shortly after this Question Time. The Government are committed to human rights at home and abroad, but in…11 Nov 2025HANSARDHuman Rights LawsI know that the right hon. Gentleman is always keen to get headlines, but he knows that the consequences of judgments—their impacts on Government and any payments made—have been…11 Nov 2025HANSARDTopical QuestionsCan I just remind the right hon. Gentleman that, just before the general election in July 2024, his Government had three different versions of their early release scheme? We…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorThe right hon. Member knows that we release those statistics on an annual basis. I think behind his question he knows that, just as the system releases prisoners in error, it…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorAs I have just said, William Fernandez went on to commit an horrific crime but the last Government never came to the Dispatch Box about that. By definition, if we got to the…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorMy hon. Friend is absolutely right: not once did the previous Government make a statement. Even when William Fernandez was released in error under them and went on to commit an…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorThe hon. Gentleman raises issues that are, in a sense, beyond the prison system. He is right about the delivery mechanism of prisoners from court to prisons. He knows, because it…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorI explained at length in my statement who is at large. I have released data today outwith the normal cycle of releasing in July, which was done under the previous Government. I…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorI am grateful to my hon. Friend for mentioning the Magee review and its recommendations. I have of course asked my officials to look closely at the recommendations and at whether…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorAs I said, I have apologised from the Dispatch Box. Human error is in the system. There are delays not just within our prisons but between different agencies, and that is why I…11 Nov 2025HANSARDPrisoner Releases in ErrorI recognise the anxiety that this issue will have caused. In a way, it has been a revelation to the public that people are released in error from our system. I emphasise that the…11 Nov 2025