Emergency plans to avoid prison overcrowding activated in Northeast as more rioters convicted

In the northeast, emergency measures were taken to address prison overcrowding following a surge in detentions following the arrest of rioters.

The long-standing plan, called “Operation Early Dawn,” involves suspects being temporarily held in police cells and not being summoned to magistrate courts until space becomes available for them in prison. The Justice Ministry confirmed on Monday that the protocol had been implemented.

The strategy will come into force in several areas, including the North East, Yorkshire, Cumbria, Lancashire, Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire.

Lord Timpson, Minister for Prisons and Probation, said: “We have inherited a justice system that is in crisis and facing shocks. That is why we are being forced to make difficult but necessary decisions to keep it running.”

He praised the efforts of staff and partners, noting: “However, thanks to the hard work of our dedicated staff and partners, we have been able to create additional places in prisons and are now launching Operation Early Dawn to address the pressures being felt in some parts of the country.”

Deputy Chief Constable Nev Kemp, who is responsible for custody matters at the National Police Chiefs' Council, said: “We are working closely with partners in the criminal justice system to manage the demand on the system and keep the public safe.”

Mr Kemp underlined the police's commitment to protecting public safety, saying: “The police will continue to arrest anyone who needs to be arrested to protect public safety. This includes policing protests and events. They will ensure that people are arrested as expected.”

Mark Fairhurst of the Prison Guards' Association expressed concern on BBC Breakfast that the policy would lead to a “delay in justice”.

He explained that while serious criminals would still be brought to justice and guaranteed a prison cell, less serious offenders might spend more time in police custody or be released on bail.

“At the moment it is justice delayed because we are not overloading the police cells, so they may have to postpone some of their operations,” he commented.

“When they arrest people, they have to make sure they provide them with a place in police custody because the cells may be full of prisoners. Of course, they have to pay overtime to supervise the prisoners.”

However, Mr Fairhurst made it clear that this would not result in people who would normally be incarcerated escaping a prison sentence.

Tom Franklin, executive director of the Judges Association, pointed out that these measures would lead to delays in the defendants' court dates.

“This means that some defendants will face delays in their trial because the prison service cannot guarantee that a place will be available for them if they are remanded in custody,” he said in an interview on BBC Radio 4's “Today” programme.

“We know that this is not the case in all regions, but in some regions, and we know that this will be reviewed during the working day. We are convinced that this is a temporary measure.”

Following the riots that broke out across England after three girls were stabbed to death in Southport, 460 people were questioned in court by the end of Thursday.

Operation Early Dawn was launched by the Conservative government in May to address the problem of prison overcrowding.

Just last month, the Ministry of Justice reported that violence and self-harm in prisons had reached “unacceptable” levels and that prisons were on the “brink of collapse” due to overcrowding.

Justice Minister Shabana Mahmood unveiled plans to reduce the proportion of prison sentences that prisoners must serve behind bars from 50% to 40%.

This temporary measure, which does not apply to people convicted of sexual offences, terrorism, domestic violence or certain violent crimes, is expected to result in the release of 5,500 offenders in September and October.