Kemi calls for halt to early release scheme for worst offenders as victims warn 'we're not safe'

By CLAIRE ELLICOTT, WHITEHALL EDITOR Published: 11:57, 28 July 2026 | Updated: 12:13, 28 July 2026 Kemi Badenoch has demanded Andy Burnham prevent the release of serious offenders as rape victims warned they were ‘not safe’. The Conservative leader said that victims had to endure life sentences while attackers were let out early. She demanded Labour change the law to prevent the early release of rapists, paedophiles and other serious offenders. The Prime Minister paused the scheme last week after it emerged that the killers of police officer Andrew Harper were being considered for early release. Around 6,000 prisoners were due to be let out in September under the early release scheme to ease prison crowding. But Mrs Badenoch said emergency legislation was needed to permanently exempt rapists, paedophiles, killers and other serious offenders from the scheme. Prisons are expected to run out of capacity later this year unless urgent action is taken to increase the number of places. In a press conference, Mrs Badenoch described the early release of serious offenders as ‘obscene’ and said: ‘No one believes that this category of prisoners should be increased. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has demanded Andy Burnham prevent the release of serious offenders as rape victims warned they were ‘not safe’ ‘We know that there is a challenge with the prison system. This is not the answer. This is not the way to do it.’ The victims, meanwhile, warned that they and their families would not be safe if their rapists were allowed out before serving their sentences. One - named only as 'Marie' - said that she had received a letter saying her rapist was due to be released under the scheme. ‘There is lots of uncertainty around the whole thing. They couldn't give us any times, dates, or anything like that, exclusion zones… give us time to go back to court for any sort of putting anything in place so we can be safe. So my family can be safe. ‘That's what I want to get out here today. You know it is us as victims. Are we safe? And I don't think we are.’ Appearing alongside rape victims, she told them that they were serving a life sentence while their attackers were released from prison early. ‘This is a life sentence for you, absolutely. They only get sentences of 20, 30 years,’ she told the victims. ‘Even most life sentences are not all life sentences. It's the victims who have the life sentences, and that is why it is really important for all of us, whatever political party we're in, wherever we are on the political spectrum, to put the victims first, it is really critical.’ Mrs Badenoch also warned that releasing offenders early was the ‘wrong message’ to be sending to criminals. ‘There will be other perpetrators who think, well, it's probably worth committing crime. I'll probably not get caught, and even if I do, I'll just serve a third of my sentence,’ she said. ‘This is the wrong message to be sending out to criminals, to violent people. It's absolutely the wrong message.’ She said Labour should release shoplifters rather than paedophiles, rapists and killers and said she would support the Government in blocking the release of these offenders. She also apologised for the fact that the Conservatives only increased prison places by 500 by the end of their 14 years in power, but said she could not fix the past.