Andy Burnham is trying to stop people who have committed child sexual abuse from being let out of prison early. Right now, the UK government has about 24 hours to decide which prisoners can be released ahead of schedule to free up space in crowded jails. A review of the plan is expected to finish within the same timeframe so prison staff have time to get ready (The Guardian, 2026-08-02).

The UK prime minister recently paused plans to release thousands of killers, rapists, and sex offenders from prison early. The goal was to relieve severe overcrowding. New laws passed under Keir Starmer's government were meant to tackle a prison space crisis that officials said could freeze up the justice system. A former justice secretary, David Lammy, introduced the law that made these early releases possible. The plan also includes a big increase in electronic tagging — devices worn on the ankle that track where a person goes. Up to 22,000 more offenders and defendants will be tagged each year (The Guardian, 2026-08-02; Gov.uk, 2025-09-02).

Burnham wants to make sure child rapists and other serious sex offenders stay in prison and are not released early. This follows concerns raised by people who support victims of abuse. Former safeguarding minister Jess Phillips, who has criticized the scheme, said it was right to consider exemptions. The victims' commissioner and domestic abuse commissioner for England and Wales had previously called for a pause on the releases, saying there were not enough protections in place and that abuse victims could be put at risk (The Guardian, 2026-08-02; The Guardian, 2026-07-08).

The early release plan is still expected to happen this autumn, starting with about 700 prisoners. David Lammy, now the UK foreign secretary, had warned that without the releases, prisons in England and Wales could run out of space entirely by November. He said he had been talking with Burnham's team about the plan. A government source said: 'If we don't take any action we will run out of room – it's not sustainable at all.' The government could change the Sentencing Act 2026 — the law that governs how criminals are sentenced — through emergency legislation, which is a fast-tracked law passed outside the normal process, to make sure rapists and child sex offenders are not released early (The Guardian, 2026-08-02; The Guardian, 2026-07-12; Hansard, 2026-07-07).

The family of PC Andrew Harper said they were angry that his killers could be eligible for early release. Harper was fatally injured while responding to a burglary in Sulhamstead, Berkshire, in August 2019. His mother, Debbie Adlam, called the possible inclusion of Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers 'another letdown' for their family (The Guardian, 2026-08-02).

The broader context here is a prison system under serious strain. Prisons in England and Wales are running out of room, and the government has to weigh that against the cost of letting serious offenders walk free early. The Starmer government inherited a system heading toward full capacity. The previous Conservative government had already tried to manage this with a temporary early release scheme that let 10,082 offenders out between October 2023 and June 2024 (BBC, 2026-07-23). The Ministry of Justice's own analysis said that reducing prison demand by 9,500 places would help make sure there is enough room for the most serious offenders (Gov.uk, 2025-05-21).

Burnham's push carries extra weight because of his track record on child sexual exploitation. As Mayor of Greater Manchester, he ordered an independent review into allegations from a 2017 BBC documentary about past child sexual exploitation in Rochdale. His combined authority also runs a dedicated programme to tackle child sexual exploitation (Greater Manchester Combined Authority, 2024-01-15). His effort to keep sex offenders off the early release list, combined with the government's tagging expansion and the option to change the Sentencing Act 2026, creates a narrow path where the scheme could go ahead in a smaller form this autumn while keeping the most controversial offenders inside.

The 24-hour deadline means decisions have to be made now. Prison staff need time to prepare for whichever exemption list is decided on, and any change to the Sentencing Act 2026 will have to move fast if the autumn releases are to stay on schedule. The clash between Lammy's warnings about running out of space and Burnham's demand to keep sex offenders inside will be settled in the coming hours. The outcome will decide which types of offender leave prison this autumn and which stay behind bars.