Speaking in Belfast, the prime minister attributed his need to launch Operation Early Dawn to the recent far-right violence and the “terrible inheritance” from the Conservative government.
If offenders are remanded into custody, the long-standing contingency mechanism postpones their summons to a magistrates’ court until a prison space becomes available.
When jails are filled to capacity, offenders may be held in police cells thanks to a policy that was previously implemented by the Conservative government.
When asked if the idea would jeopardize public safety by transferring resources for law enforcement or by allowing more prisoners to be released on bond, Sir Keir responded that the government.
He attributed this to the “terrible inheritance of prisons that we had as an incoming government from the previous government” .
The prime minister stated, “There was a fundamental failure, which is a failure to have enough prison places for the number of prisoners that were being sentenced to prison.”
That was about as fundamental a failure of the previous administration as it could have been.
“In recent weeks, the disorder has put additional strain on us, which we have had to deal with.
