Howard League responds to Independent Sentencing Review’s initial findings 

The Howard League for Penal Reform has responded to a report from the Independent Sentencing Review on the prison capacity crisis, published today (Tuesday 18 February).

Andrew Neilson, Director of Campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “These initial findings from the Independent Sentencing Review support what the Howard League has been saying for many years.

“In our paper published last year, the four surviving former Lords Chief Justice of England and Wales and Sir Brian Leveson called on the government to reverse the trend of imposing ever longer sentences, giving warning that radical solutions are needed to address the acute crisis in prisons.

“This is not simply a crisis of prison capacity. Our overcrowded and violent prisons are breeding grounds for crime, while probation services are overstretched and under-resourced within the community.

“We welcome these findings from the Review and look forward to proposals to reset the system. Action cannot come quickly enough if we are to achieve a sustainable and more effective course for prisons and probation in the future.”

Notes to editors

1. The Howard League for Penal Reform is the oldest penal reform charity in the world. It is a national charity working for less crime, safer communities and fewer people in prison.
2. The report from the Independent Sentencing Review will be available on the Ministry of Justice website.
3. Our paper, Sentence inflation: A judicial critiquecan be downloaded here: https://howardleague.org/publications/sentence-inflation-a-judicial-critique/
4. For more information about sentence inflation, how it came about, and how it can be solved, visit the ‘What is sentence inflation?’ page on the Howard League website at: https://howardleague.org/what-is-sentence-inflation/

Contact

Noor Khan
Press and Public Affairs Officer
Tel: +44 (0)20 7241 7873
Email: [email protected]