‘Huge relief’ for victims of indefinite prison sentences after bill rushed through Parliament – South London News

Campaigners working to expose the ‘biggest blemish’ on the UK’s criminal justice system have expressed ‘huge relief’, while Victims and Prisoners The bill was submitted to Parliament last week.

On 21 May, peers in the House of Lords agreed the Government’s key amendments to the Prison for Public Protection (PPP) reform bill.

IPP sentences do not have an end date, with prisoners remaining in custody until they can demonstrate they do not pose a risk.

The penalty was introduced in 2005 and withdrawn in 2012 after widespread criticism. But it was not retroactively repealed and nearly 3,000 people who received PPI remain in prison.

There were 11 IPP prisoners in HMP Brixton and nine in HMP Wandsworth in 2022, according to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request obtained by campaign group United Group for Reform of IPP.

Both prisons have received scathing reports of overcrowding and unacceptable living conditions by the chief inspector of prisons in the last two years.

Due to the nature of their sentence, PPIs are thought to be at greater risk of suicide and self-harm. Recent government data showed that 86 IPPs have committed suicide in prison since 2005, with a further 33 self-inflicted deaths by IPPs in the community since 2019.

While campaigners said the government’s concessions in the bill included “essential measures”, the bill fell short of their final demand – resentment for all IPPs.

Richard Garside, Director of the Vauxhall Center for Crime and Justice Studies said: “It is a huge relief that Members of Parliament have stuck their collective fingers out to pass this legislation.

“Had Parliament failed to pass these small but important reforms, the impact on those serving IPPs, whether in prison or in the community, would have been devastating.

“The battle to end the IPP sentence for good continues. I hope that the new Government will show the imagination and seriousness of purpose, so lacking in recent years, and get the job done.”

Pictured above: HMP Brixton (Image: Google Street View)

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