Huge U-turn as PC Andrew Harper’s killers will NOT be launched early from jail
Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers were jailed over the manslaughter of PC Andrew Harper and Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he would do “everything possible” to ensure the pair were not released early
Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers might not be released from prison according to reports (Image: Thames Valley Police/PA Wire)
PC Andrew Harper’s killers will be excluded from the early release scheme and will remain behind bars, according to reports.
Those convicted of a certain type of manslaughter will no longer be eligible for early release, including Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, reports say. Andy Burnham previously pledged to do “everything possible” to ensure the pair were not freed from prison early, following widespread condemnation of the scheme.
But the Prime Minister declined to confirm this particular change relating to “unlawful act” manslaughter earlier this month, telling reporters it was “speculation”. He ordered a review of the scheme, which is being undertaken by Justice Secretary Alex Norris and is set to be published when Parliament returns from summer recess in September.
Mr Norris was asked by Mr Burnham “to develop a plan to maximise public safety and minimise the early release of prisoners”. Police chiefs have since been told Mr Norris will introduce secondary legislation to amend the Sentencing Act, according to The Telegraph.
Bowers and Cole, two of PC Harper’s three killers, were passengers in the car that dragged the police officer down a country road after he got caught in a strap attached to the vehicle as they fled the scene of a quad bike theft in Sulhamstead, Berkshire, in 2019. Under the scheme’s current rules, they would be released next year, halfway through their 13-year sentences.
Labour’s early release scheme started in September 2024 with the aim of easing overcrowding in jails. It allows certain prisoners to be released after serving 40 per cent of their fixed-term sentence, rather than the usual 50 per cent.
The 2026 Sentencing Act, which became law earlier this year, allows for an expansion of the early release scheme by reducing the threshold from 40 per cent of a fixed-term sentence to a third.
Since becoming Prime Minister, Mr Burnham has excluded rapists and child sex offenders from being eligible for the scheme. Unlawful act manslaughter is when a person causes the death of another while committing a separate illegal act.
A Government spokesperson said: “The death of PC Andrew Harper was a horrific crime.
“Our thoughts are with his family and friends, and we share the anger from the police community that we are in this position. The Prime Minister has asked the Justice Secretary to work through further options to keep a greater number of the most serious offenders in prison, including the killers of Pc Harper.
“Thanks to tireless campaigning by Andrew’s family, Harper’s Law means that anyone convicted of killing an emergency worker whilst committing a crime now gets a mandatory life sentence.
“This Government has gone further by introducing a presumption that anyone convicted of murdering a police, prison or probation officer is handed a whole-life order.”
