Daily Politics from the New Statesman Our justice system is leaking from the sides
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Dec 2, 2025 Oli Dugmore interviews Rachel Cunliffe, the Associate Political Editor at the New Statesman, who shares her insights on the UK justice system's recent turmoil. They discuss the alarming rise in accidental prisoner releases due to systemic issues like understaffing and outdated paperwork. Rachel critiques a proposed plan to eliminate jury trials, highlighting the balance between ancient rights and the need for timely justice. Funding cuts and their impact on the justice crisis are also examined, raising concerns about public trust in the system.
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Accidental Releases Were Systemic And Rising
- Prisoner releases have always been mistaken but errors have risen significantly in the last year.
- The 2024 emergency early release scheme and understaffing amplified processing mistakes across the system.
Former Inmate Described Daily Release Errors
- Chris Atkins said mistaken releases happened 'every day' during his time in Wandsworth and described the chaos.
- He blamed understaffing and mountains of handwritten paperwork that cause calculation and identification errors.
Paperwork And Staffing Are The Root Causes
- The core causes are understaffing and analogue paperwork, not only policy changes.
- Handwritten records, manual arithmetic and misread judges' notes produce frequent release mistakes.
