The government has announced it is spending £110m to create more cells within existing prisons across England and Wales. This funding, drawn from existing budgets, aims to accelerate the construction of hundreds of new prison places.
The Ministry of Justice stated that unused office space, laundry rooms, and storage areas within prisons will be converted into cells. Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary Alex Norris commented that the government would be "getting spades in the ground quicker to deliver thousands more places to lock up dangerous criminals and keep the public safe."
This investment is part of the government's 2025 spending review, which allocated £7bn for capital investment to create 14,000 prison places by 2031. The £110m announced on Monday is not new investment but is being reprioritised from previously announced funds.
The Lord Chancellor is scheduled to update Parliament on Tuesday, detailing changes to upcoming sentencing reforms designed to prevent hundreds more offenders from early release. Other measures include plans to expedite the removal of foreign national offenders and address Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences.
An additional £18.9m investment for victim services will also be announced to Parliament, reprioritised from existing budgets. This funding will provide specialist emotional and practical support for victims.
Separately, the Ministry of Justice has signed a contract to begin building a new jail in Lancashire, designed to house 1,700 inmates. Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated at the weekend that individuals convicted of manslaughter would be excluded from the early prisoner release scheme, which is expected to see approximately 4,500 prisoners released in tranches from October.