Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the Conservative Party, has asked Prime Minister Andy Burnham to pass an emergency law to stop hundreds of prisoners — including people convicted of violent and sexual crimes — being let out of prison early in September.

Badenoch said she would support such a law to prevent rapists and killers serving far shorter sentences than expected (The Telegraph). She was expected to make the demand at a press conference with victims on Tuesday.

Badenoch asked Burnham to cancel a law due to take effect on 2 September and, if needed, to recall Parliament — meaning MPs would be called back early from their summer break to vote. She said dangerous offenders would start being released on Tuesday 1 September, the day after MPs return from recess (BBC News).

'Without emergency legislation, dangerous violent and sexual offenders will be released at the start of September,' Badenoch said (AOL). She added: 'It's all well and good cutting bills and bus fares, but that pales into insignificance when paedophiles and rapists are about to be let out on our streets' (BBC News).

The early release scheme would have freed about 700 prisoners in September alone. It was designed to reduce overcrowding in prisons in England and Wales. Under the scheme, thousands of prisoners could have been released after serving just a third of their sentence (BBC News). The rules for early release depend on how long a prisoner's sentence is, not what crime they committed (BBC News). That means people convicted of serious crimes can qualify if their sentence is short enough.

Burnham said last week he was pausing the scheme after complaints from survivors and victims. But the Conservatives say the government's review will not actually stop offenders being released (BBC News).

Nick Timothy, the Conservative spokesperson on justice matters, said victims should not have to live in fear all summer while waiting for a review. He called on Labour to stop the mass release of dangerous criminals (BBC News).

A Labour Party spokesperson pointed to the Conservatives' own record in government. 'The Conservatives have some nerve. During their 14 years…' the spokesperson said, adding: 'It's this government that is fixing the Tories' mess' (BBC News).

Early release from prison was first used by the Conservative government in 2023 because prisons were too full. By June 2024, before Labour came to power, 10,000 prisoners had already been released early (BBC News; UK Parliament).

MPs have debated the scheme and the call for emergency legislation on four dates: 21 January, 3 February, 7 July, and 13 July 2026. These discussions are recorded in Hansard, the official written record of what is said in Parliament (House of Commons Hansard, 13 July 2026; House of Commons Hansard, 7 July 2026; House of Commons Hansard, 3 February 2026; House of Commons Hansard, 21 January 2026).

During the 7 July debate, an MP said the government had 'folded' on the early release scheme but could not explain what would happen next, and asked whether emergency legislation would be introduced (House of Commons Hansard, 7 July 2026). On 13 July, MPs discussed the Immigration and Asylum Bill and noted that a previous law — the Early Release Act 2020 — was passed through Parliament in about 15 days (House of Commons Hansard, 13 July 2026).

The broader context is that prison policy in the UK sits at a complicated junction. Sentencing and prisons in England and Wales are managed by the UK government in Westminster, not by local governments. But the political pressure on Burnham is intense because the release rules are based on sentence length rather than the type of crime, which sits uneasily with public concern about violent and sexual offending. The fact that the Early Release Act 2020 was passed in roughly 15 days means MPs will be asking whether a new emergency law could be pushed through before 1 September, if the government decides to go further than just pausing the scheme.

By offering to back emergency legislation, Badenoch has put the ball in the government's court. The government must either accept her terms or explain why pausing the scheme is different from cancelling it entirely. The Conservatives say the government's review is too slow, given that September releases are weeks away. The key question is whether the pause is a first step towards changing the law — or simply a holding position as Parliament gets ready to return from its summer break.