Pact welcomes new measures in King’s Speech

The King’s Speech, published today, 7 November 2023, contains a series of new bills that affect prisons and the criminal justice system. The new measures include:

• A presumption that people sentenced to less than a year in prison will serve their sentence in the community;
• An extension to the early release scheme for lower-risk prisoners.

In response, Andy Keen-Downs, Pact CEO said: 

“The King’s Speech contains a number of sensible measures that will support efforts to deliver safer prisons and reduce reoffending. In particular, a reduction in short-term sentences and the early release scheme are welcome developments. 

“Short sentences do more harm than good - community sentences are significantly more effective at reducing reoffending than a short stay in prison. Equally, releasing lower-risk prisoners slightly early and with the right support, in reality, poses no additional risk to the public. We and other voluntary sector partners stand ready to support this and make it a success.

“Whilst there remains much work to do, the Government deserves credit for taking these common-sense steps to address some of the major challenges facing the criminal justice system.”