A new report from UK-based charity, the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies (CCJS), has outlined an innovative five-point strategy for resolving a decades long miscarriage of justice in UK prisons, the Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) crisis.
The report – ‘How to resolve the IPP crisis for good’ – is authored by Dr Roger Grimshaw, CCJS Research Director, and features key recommendations for the UK government to remedy the damage wrought by IPPs – a form of ‘indefinite’ prison sentence introduced in 2003. These measures include a resentencing exercise for all IPP prisoners, compassionate release of the most distressed inmates alongside a recovery and reparations programme, and a review of all forms of preventive detention in the UK.
Despite the abolition of IPPs in 2012, nearly 3,000 people remain in prison today, 12 years later. 1,227 people have never been released, 699 of whom are more than 10 years beyond their original tariff. According to IPP campaign organisations, at least 90 people have committed suicide while serving an IPP since 2003, with the number feared much higher, due to the difficulty of recording deaths in the community
The CCJS’s call for these prisoners to be resentenced comes as UK prisons reach breaking point, with estimates indicating they will be beyond capacity by next month, April 2024. Pressure is mounting on Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk KC, to take decisive action and bring about a resolution to what the Justice Committee has called an “unfair, inhumane, and unsustainable” situation.
The Communication Group plc supported the release of the CCJS’s report with a tailored media engagement programme, achieving over 200 pieces of coverage. This coverage included a mixture of online, print, and broadcast coverage, with highlights in Mail Online, The Independent, Evening Standard, Times Radio, and BBC Radio Manchester.
