Plight of IPP prisoners still shames our justice system

John Thomas, the former lord chief justice, said in parliament on Wednesday: “We cannot shirk the responsibility for rectifying an injustice. And what an injustice this is.” He is right.

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It seems hard to believe that in Britain today there are thousands of people in our prisons who are serving unlimited sentences. Many of them were originally jailed for relatively minor offences, but because they were considered a danger to the public, they were given a specific type of sentence known as imprisonment for public protection (IPP).

This meant that they would stay behind bars until the Parole Board judged that it was safe to release them. It also meant that, if they were released, they could be recalled for any breach of the conditions of their release - again, often relatively minor – and their indefinite sentence would resume.

These sentences were meant for a small number of serious offenders whose condition did not justify detention under the Mental Health Act, but who were nevertheless considered dangerous.