Fewer than 100 spaces left in male prisons after surge in arrests over Bank Holiday

FEWER than 100 spaces are left in male prisons after a surge in arrests over the Bank Holiday weekend.

It is believed to be the closest the country’s jails have ever been to breaking point as hundreds were arrested over the August holiday.

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Fewer than 100 spaces are left in male prisons after a surge in arrests over the Bank Holiday weekend[/caption]

The Ministry of Justice is already due to release thousands of inmates early when a scheme to let out lags at the 40 per cent mark of their sentences comes into force on September 10.

Operation Early Dawn is also in action which allows defendants to be kept in police cells before their court hearings until a prison space becomes available.

Sources have suggested that government officials are confident they will not have to trigger Operation Brinker, which would allow suspects to be held in police custody for longer, including overnight.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “The new Government inherited a justice system in crisis and has been forced into taking difficult but necessary action to ensure we can keep locking up dangerous criminals and protect the public.

“Staff across the whole criminal justice system are working incredibly hard and the Government will continue to support them before the changes come into effect on 10 September.”

There are usually fewer spaces available after a bank holiday as arrests rise but prisons do not carry out routine releases.

The Government is introducing 500 new prison spaces in the coming weeks.

A total of 349 people were arrested at Notting Hill carnival over the weekend for offences including possessing an offensive weapon, assaulting an emergency worker, and violence.