The Independent Operation Early Dawn set to help manage short-term prison capacity pressure in North of England.
The government has put emergency measures in place to avoid prison overcrowding with more rioters set to be sentenced for their role in violent disorder this week.
The activation of Operation Early Dawn – a long-standing plan that allows defendants to be held in police cells and not summoned to magistrates’ court until a space in prison is available – is set to help manage short-term prison capacity pressure in some areas, the Ministry of Justice said on Monday.
The temporary measure comes after recent weeks saw hundreds of people imprisoned in the north of England following the far-right riots as well as amid longstanding capacity failures. UK prisons have been operating at critical levels for the last several years, often with under 1 per cent capacity.
It means that defendants waiting for a court appearance in the north of England will be kept in police cells until prison space is available. The measure will be put in place in the North East and Yorkshire; Cumbria and Lancashire; and Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire regions.
Prisons and probation minister Lord Timpson said: “We inherited a justice system in crisis and exposed to shocks. As a result, we have been forced into making difficult but necessary decisions to keep it operating.
“However, thanks to the hard work of our dedicated staff and partners, we have brought forward additional prison places and now introduced Operation Early Dawn to manage the pressure felt in some parts of the country.”
National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) lead for custody, Deputy Chief Constable Nev Kemp, said: “We are working closely with criminal justice system partners to manage demand in the system and ensure that the public are safe…
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