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More cells being built within prisons to help tackle overcrowding

The plan would create hundreds of places by converting unused prison spaces and speed up a 1,700-place jail project, officials said.

  • On Tuesday, Justice Secretary Alex Norris announced in Parliament a £110 million investment to create hundreds of prison places by converting existing offices and laundry rooms into cells.
  • Prisons in England and Wales currently operate at 97% capacity, prompting the government to fast-track internal conversions to address the urgent space crisis.
  • On Sunday, Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced that killers of Thames Valley Police officer Andrew Harper and all convicted of unlawful killing are excluded from early release schemes.
  • The move means 1,400 extra prisoners will remain behind bars, limiting the scheme's capacity to create room for newly convicted offenders.
  • Prison Officers' Association chair Mark Fairhurst questioned the plan, asking "where are the staff coming from to supervise people" if capacity expands without staffing increases.
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22 Articles

Left

A release program for offenders should create space in the over-filled prisons. The step is controversial – and could not be enough.

·Berlin, Germany
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The Herald ScotlandThe Herald Scotland
+2 Reposted by 2 other sources
Lean Left

Prisons will still function under plans to turn laundries into cells – minister

Justice Secretary Alex Norris said hundreds of urgently-needed places would be created by converting storerooms and offices.

·Glasgow, United Kingdom
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Bias Distribution

  • 50% of the sources lean Left
50% Left

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Manchester Evening News broke the news in Chadderton, United Kingdom on Monday, August 31, 2026.
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