Government announces plans to reduce prison overcrowding through early releases and community sentences

The prison population in England and Wales has reached record levels, leaving only a few hundred spare places.
Justice Secretary Alex Chalk has outlined several measures to reduce overcrowding, including suspending sentences under a year and early release for some prisoners.
Low-level offenders will be required to do unpaid community work instead of going to prison under the new plans.
Foreign criminals may be deported back to their home countries earlier to free up prison spaces.
The government intends to build thousands of new prison places over the next few years to increase capacity.