Streeting and Mahmood accused of making ‘cheap jokes’ about prisoner early release scheme

Shabana Mahmood and Wes Streeting were caught on camera making jokes about the prisoner early release scheme. Composite: Getty View image in fullscreen Shabana Mahmood and Wes Streeting were caught on camera making jokes about the prisoner early release scheme. Composite: Getty Streeting and Mahmood accused of making ‘cheap jokes’ about prisoner early release scheme Victims of crime say it’s ‘no laughing matter’ after ministers caught on hot mic ‘ribbing’ about scheme UK politics live – latest updates Victims of crime have accused ministers of making “cheap jokes” about releasing prisoners early after Wes Streeting and Shabana Mahmood apologised after being caught on camera “ribbing” about the scheme. In a video, the new justice secretary, Alex Norris, can be seen walking towards Mahmood and Streeting, the new defence secretary, who can be heard calling Norris “the enemy now”, while Mahmood responds “no he’s not”. In the recording, published by the news website Guido Fawkes , Streeting says: “He wants to let them all out” – an apparent reference to the government’s plans for the early release for prisoners, while laughter can be heard. Streeting and the home secretary, Mahmood, have apologised for the comments caught on the hot mic, with each saying the early release scheme was a “serious issue”. In a post on social media, Streeting wrote: “I hope everyone can see there was no ill intent behind this ribbing of the new justice secretary – it was a reference to an old [Theresa] May/[Ken] Clarke joke. But I appreciate these are very serious issues and am sorry for any offence inadvertently caused by this moment of levity.” The home secretary wrote: “I think everyone can see there was no ill intent behind this ribbing of the new lord chancellor – a role I once filled and which comes with immense challenges thanks to the vandalism inflicted on our justice system by the last Conservative government. “But I appreciate this is an extremely serious issue and do not want anyone to mistake this moment of levity for a lack of serious intent.” In 2017, Theresa May said of the former conservative justice secretary Ken Clarke: “When I was home secretary, I used to say: ‘I locked ’em up and he let ’em out’.” But victims have reacted angrily to the comments after the victims commissioner and the domestic abuse commissioner made a rare coordinated intervention to warn the government about the early release scheme, which they say will put abuse victims at risk. Hundreds of offenders will start being released early under the new Sentencing Act from September. Unlike the emergency measures in the early months of the Labour government, in which tens of thousands of prisoners were released as prisons ran out of space, the new sentencing law includes no exemptions for prisoners convicted of serious crimes, domestic abuse or terrorism. The victim’s commissioner, Claire Waxman, has written to Andy Burnham and Norris, urging them to look again at the early release scheme a