Criminals could be let out of prison after serving just a sixth of their sentence in bid to tackle overcrowding.
Published: Updated: 13:49, 28 August 2026
Criminals could be let out of Britain's prisons to serve time under 'house arrest' after completing just a sixth of their sentence behind bars, sources claimed today.
Officials at the Ministry of Justice are said to be considering changes to home detention curfews (HDCs) as part of the latest proposals to avoid jails becoming full.
The curfews mean prisoners can live at home, where they must stay in for the 12 hours between 7pm and 7am while being monitored with an electronic ankle tag.
Inmates currently become eligible for HDC release when they have served a fifth of the custodial part of a sentence, under the scheme first introduced in 1999.
However a new 'progression' sentencing model coming into force from October could see some inmates be switched to house arrest after just a sixth of their sentences.
While a prisoner is currently eligible for HDC at the 20 per cent point, this is only an 'eligibility' date and does not mean they are automatically released at this point.
But releasing prisoners even earlier is now being considered by the Government as one of a series of measures to prevent the country's jails running out of space.
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