Prison licence recalls outnumbered releases in England and Wales for a second straight quarter, Ministry of Justice (MoJ) figures released Thursday showed, as the department linked a longer rise in admissions to policy changes.
From April through June, the MoJ counted 12,338 licence recalls against 12,278 releases from prison sentences. The gap followed a wider one in the first quarter: 13,193 recalls compared with 12,977 sentence releases from January through March. A licence recall requires a person to return to custody after a breach of release conditions.
MoJ data recorded 52,716 recalls in the 12 months through June 2026, 27% more than in the previous 12-month period. The quarterly release also counted 11,898 recall admissions from April through June, up 15% from a year earlier. Admissions for people serving determinate sentences of at least 12 months increased 51% over that comparison.
The MoJ said recall admissions have trended upward since early 2022 and pointed to a combination of rule changes and early-release schemes as possible factors. A Sept. 2, 2025, change expanded fixed-term recalls to people serving determinate sentences of four years or less. The department also cited continuing effects from schemes such as Standard Determinate Sentence 40% (SDS40).
A separate change took effect March 31, introducing 56-day fixed-term recalls. The MoJ said that change likely contributed to the increase in admissions among people serving determinate sentences of at least 12 months.
The Guardian reported that recalls were contributing to pressure on prison capacity. Rob Preece, head of communications at the Howard League for Penal Reform, told the newspaper that overcrowding and staff shortages made rehabilitation difficult.
The MoJ’s next quarterly statistics release is provisionally scheduled for Jan. 28, 2027.
