Commentary on Sections Part 12 - Sentencing Chapter 6: Release of Prisoners on Licence Section 260: Early removal of prisoners liable to removal from United Kingdom
592.Under the Criminal Justice Act 1991 any short-term foreign national prisoners (those serving a sentence of less than 4 years) who are liable to removal from the UK are automatically released from prison and liable to be removed from the UK at the half-way point in their sentence. They are statutorily excluded from early release under the Home Detention Curfew scheme (section 34A(e) of the 1991 Act as amended by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998).
593.Long-term foreign national prisoners (those serving a determinate sentence of 4 years or more) are considered for early release at the halfway point of their sentence (their Parole Eligibility Date). The decision whether to release is based upon a careful risk assessment. Those who are not considered an acceptable risk for release on parole remain in custody until their automatic release date at the two-thirds point of sentence.
594.Both short and long term foreign national prisoners released from prison are liable to be detained under immigration law until they are finally removed from the UK.
595.Section 260 introduces a new scheme for early removal from prison for foreign national prisoners liable to removal as defined in section 259. Eligible prisoners may be removed from prison up to 135 days earlier than their normal release date.
596.Subsections (1) and (2) set out the minimum requisite custodial period to which the scheme will apply and the period of time to be served before removal from prison will be possible.
597.Certain prisoners will be excluded from the scheme. These statutory exclusions are set out in subsection (3).
598.Subsections (4) and (5) will ensure that prisoners remain liable to be detained in pursuance of their sentences whilst remaining in the UK so that if, for example, the prisoner makes an application for asylum, after being removed under the scheme, the prisoner will be returned to prison to continue to serve the sentence until the normal release date, at which point the prisoner will become subject to immigration law.
599.Subsection (6) gives the Secretary of State the power to amend by order the eligibility requirements of the minimum sentence and custodial period to be served for early removal under the scheme