Yahoo News Coronavirus: 'Low-risk' inmates should be released to prevent spread of disease, former prisons chief says
Low-risk prisoners should be freed so that prisons do not become “incubators” for coronavirus, a former chief inspector of prisons has suggested.
Nick Hardwick warned that the prison system was under additional strain because “hundreds” of prison workers were currently self-isolating.
He told the BBC’s Newsnight programme on Thursday that low-risk inmates with a few months left to serve could be released to help alleviate this pressure.
Mr Hardwick said: "If you're talking about low-risk prisoners coming to the end of their sentences, it's perfectly possible to manage them in the community safely."
"No-one is saying you're going to let out huge numbers of dangerous people, but you can reduce pressure on the system by letting out a bit early people who maybe have got a month or two longer to serve,” he added.
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