Sevenfold increase in dangerous prisoners moved to lower-security jails.
Crisis over lack of prison places laid bare by figures that show 721 criminals were transferred from Category A to Category C prisons last year
Matt Dathan
, Home Affairs Editor
The Times
The prison population in England and Wales is at its highest level since the postwar period
GARETH COPLEY/PA
The number of serious criminals being transferred to lower-security jails increased more than sevenfold last year owing to pressure on space in Category A prisons.
Figures disclosed by the Ministry of Justice have revealed that 721 prisoners were moved from the highest-security — Category A — to Category C jails last year.
This was more than seven times higher than the 100 who were moved in 2022 and the total was more than the previous seven years put together.
There was also a 40 per cent increase in the number of Category A prisoners transferred to Category B prisons last year, from 232 in 2022 to 326 in 2023. Times.
