Burnham ‘confident’ early release of PC Harper’s killers can be halted

Andy Burnham says he is “confident” PC Andrew Harper’s killers can be excluded from the government’s early release scheme, as outcry over the case grows.

The prime minister has ordered the justice secretary to find a way to bar Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, who were jailed for 13 years for manslaughter in 2020, from early release.

He said a plan to prevent more prisoners from being freed long before the end of their sentences would be presented to Parliament in September.

The move comes after days of pressure to exclude Harper’s killers from the scheme, which is aiming to free about 5,000 offenders in England and Wales to make space in overcrowded jails.

Harper’s mother, Debbie Adlam, told the BBC she was in “turmoil” following conflicting reports about whether two of her son’s killers would be released from prison early, describing the handling of the situation as a “hash”.

Burnham’s position on early releases has shifted since last week, when he said there was “nothing more” he could do without risking the collapse of the prison system.

He launched a review of the scheme after he became prime minister and last week, he announced that some prisoners convicted of rape, serious child sex and other grooming offences would be barred from early release.

In an article published last week, external, Burnham said he “wanted to go even further” but had “pushed to the very limits of what is possible to do”.

He added: “I know I can look people in the eye and say to them there is nothing more I could have asked for without risking the prison system reaching capacity and collapsing within months.”

But on Tuesday, Burnham insisted he had never accepted “there was nothing more that could be done” to prevent the early release of more offenders, including Harper’s killers.

Burnham told reporters “nothing has changed”. He added: “I came into office and started pushing on this issue, and I have pushed every single day in office”.

Burnham said he would seek to hold talks with other political parties to build “consensus” on the approach to early releases.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp accused Burnham and Labour of “re-traumatising victims and their families with their constant U-turns”.

“Just yesterday No 10 briefed (falsely) that it was impossible to keep them [PC Harper’s killers] in [prison],” Philp wrote on X.

“Now, 24 hours later, he’s changed his mind again.”