Why are prisons so full in England and Wales?
- As of 2024, 72% of prisoners are serving sentences of four years or more, up from 54% in 2009.
- The number of prisoners on remand has increased by 87% since 2019, reaching over 17,000 due to court backlogs.
- The combination of longer sentences and increased remand prisoners has led to significant overcrowding in prisons.
Prison overcrowding in England and Wales has reached critical levels, with a significant increase in the number of inmates serving longer sentences. As of 2024, 72% of prisoners are serving sentences of four years or more, a rise from 54% in 2009. This trend is attributed to political pressures that have led to longer sentences for various offenses, particularly violent and sexual crimes. The number of prisoners convicted of violent offenses has surged, with one in three inmates now guilty of such crimes, the highest rate since at least 2015. Despite the increase in the prison population, violent crime rates have remained stable since the pandemic, indicating that the rise in incarceration is not directly linked to a spike in crime. The backlog in the court system, exacerbated by the Covid crisis and a barristers' strike in 2022, has resulted in a record number of individuals on remand, with over 17,000 prisoners awaiting trial as of June this year. This figure represents an 87% increase since 2019. Additionally, the number of recall prisoners has also risen significantly, from 5,260 in 2014 to 12,199 in June 2023. This increase is partly due to serious offenses committed by individuals released under probation supervision, which has put additional strain on the probation service. The growing number of inmates and the backlog in the justice system have created a challenging environment for both the prison system and victims of crime. Experts suggest that the combination of longer sentences, increased remand prisoners, and the backlog in courts has led to a perfect storm of overcrowding in prisons, prompting the government to consider early releases to alleviate the situation.