Lib Dem MP: Short sentences are not tough on crime

In their general election manifesto, the Lib Dems said they wanted to break the “cycle of reoffending by improving rehabilitation in prisons and on release, and strengthening the supervision of offenders in the community”.

The policy motion at conference is more specific. It calls on the government to “put cutting reoffending at the heart of their plan to end the prisons crisis”.

This includes “introducing a plan to improve the rehabilitation of people leaving prison”, and reaffirming an existing policy of a presumtion against sentences under a year.

Now the Lib Dems will debate their plans for prisons at conference – and Babardine is keen to have his say.

As someone who once employed ex-offenders, the newly elected MP for Eastbourne has strong views on justice and what that means.

Before entering politics, he volunteered as a youth worker in London, supporting children from challenging backgrounds.

“I loved that work and it meant a lot to me because I had a tricky childhood,” Babarinde said.

He went on to found Cracked It, a smartphone repair company that was staffed by young ex-offenders.

When thinking about ways he could equip young people with the skills to work in the tech sector, he realised there was a huge demand for phone repair.

He watched YouTube videos to teach himself how to fix phones, and once he’d piloted the business at a market in London, he launched repair pop-ups in offices across the capital.

Eventually, the company was closed during the Covid pandemic, after lockdown restrictions shuttered offices and undermined its business model.

But until then, Babarinde said it was a successful business, with employees with criminal convictions at its core.

So why did he employ ex-offenders?