Overview

• Justice Secretary announced plan to reduce sentence proportion from 50% to 40% due to prison overcrowding.
• Scheme, SDS40, set to release 5,500 offenders, excluding those convicted of severe crimes.
• Whistleblowers report potential early release of serious offenders due to policy loopholes.
• Prison population in England and Wales hits record high, forcing government action.
• Ministry of Justice aims to recruit over 1,000 new probation officers by March 2025.