EXCLUSIVEThree in five prisons are now overcrowded, analysis shows as Labour vows to release convicts even earlier to free up space amid warnings jail population could soar by another 20,000 in five years
More than three in five prisons are overcrowded, MailOnline analysis shows.
Around 87,500 inmates are currently being housed across England and Wales and prison governors fear they will run out of space within days.
Thousands will be automatically freed early under a controversial plan orchestrated by Labour, who have vowed to tackle the crisis.
Prisoners, including some criminals convicted of violent offences, will be released after serving just 40 per cent of their sentence, rather than the current 50 per cent.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood warned we face 'a total breakdown of law and order' with 'van-loads of dangerous people circling the country with nowhere to go' without the emergency measure.
But Tories have accused Sir Keir's Government of 'shameless scaremongering', with hundreds of prison spaces still available nationwide.
One Conservative source accused Sir Keir's Government of 'stoking public panic for political gain' and having 'lost their nerve'.
Stark internal forecasts warn the prison population could soar by another 18,000 in five years without action, piling extra pressure on an already fragile system.
Seventy-three of the 119 occupied prisons (61%) in England and Wales are operating at overcrowded levels, according to MailOnline's analysis of Ministry of Justice data for June.
Another 23 operate above 95%, including three Category As – HMP Wakefield (99%), HMP Whitemoor (98%) and HMP Manchester (96%).
Some facilities have been stretched beyond their limits for over a decade, including scandal-hit HMP Wandsworth, the scene of an escape by terror suspect Daniel Khalife last year, as well as a prison guard being caught on video having sex with an inmate last month.
South west London's Category B prison – one of the biggest in the country – housed more extra criminals than any other facility last month.
Government figures show it had more than 1,500 inmates in June, 550 above what it can provide 'normal accommodation' for (running at 157% capacity).
Yet HMP Leeds, another Category B, was technically the busiest, running at 172%.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced a series of measures designed to ease overcrowding in jails and avert a 'total breakdown of law and order'. In a speech at HMP Five Wells, in Northamptonshire, she said prisons were 'on the point of collapse'
Capacity for MailOnline's analysis, as measured by Her Majesty's Prison & Probation Service (HMPPS) itself, reflects the 'decent standard of accommodation the Service aspires to provide all prisoners' – known as Certified Normal Accommodation (CNA).
An inmate housed in cells not of a 'certified normal standard' will likely be sharing a room designed for one with another prisoner.
In some cases, three people may share cells designed for two.
Across England and Wales as a whole, the number of prisoners has exceeded CNA capacity for the entirety of the last decade.
Figures for June show prisons had an 'uncrowded capacity' of nearly 79,700, despite there being more than 87,300 convicts behind bars.
Similar figures were seen when the Tories came into power in May 2010 and during Labour's last administration.
The MoJ also tracks crowding by 'operational capacity'.
This reflects the number of inmates prison directors say the establishment can hold 'taking into account control, security and the proper operation of the planned regime'.
This means, charity bosses state, some inmates will live in accommodation that does not meet minimum requirements.
According to the MoJ's latest figures for the week ending July 12, prisons in England and Wales had a 'usable operational capacity' of 88,956.
This indicates that around 1,450 spaces are technically available.
But just 700 remain in the adult male estate, with men's prisons having been running at 99 per cent capacity since the beginning of 2023.
These figures exclude the 1,350 of other cells purposely kept free as a contingency measure, so prisons have the capacity to operate safely and respond to any urgent or unforeseen circumstances.
The Prison Reform Trust told MailOnline the figures show successive governments' 'strategy has failed' in reducing overcrowding.
Deputy director Mark Day said: 'The creation of the concept "Operational Capacity" was is in itself an admission of failure by the prison service.
'It was an acknowledgement it was being asked to hold more people than the prison estate was designed to, in worse conditions than it wanted to.
'Since its creation, overcrowded prisons have become the norm, as successive governments have tried to build their way out of the problem.
'But as these figures show, this strategy has failed. The elimination of overcrowding should be the prerequisite of a modern, decent and effective prison system.'
Prison Reform Trust chief executive Pia Sinha said overcrowded conditions leave staff at risk and are an 'indignity' for prisoners.
She said: 'Overcrowding is more than the indignity of sharing a cell, designed for fewer occupants, for 23 hours a day with people you don't know, and eating in the same space as the unscreened toilet you share.
'Its impact affects us all indirectly.
'Nearly all people in prison will return to our communities at some point, and it's in everyone's interest that when they do, they are less likely to commit crime.
'Overcrowding undermines this.
'It means that staff are forced to supervise more people than they're able to safely. Prisoners are forced to spend more time in their cells, rather than in education, training and work.
'It means people in prison are less safe, with hopelessness and frustration fuelling self-ham and assaults.
'Successive governments have tried to build more prisons as a solution to the problem, but as these figures show, this strategy has failed.
'The elimination of overcrowding, and with it our collective safety, can only be achieved by considering who we send to prison and for how long.'
In a speech at HMP Five Wells, in Northamptonshire, Ms Mahmood said: 'In short, if we fail to act now, we face the collapse of the criminal justice system and a total breakdown of law and order.'
She stressed the rule would not apply to violent offenders serving more than four years, sex offenders or those in prison for crimes connected to domestic abuse.
Dangerous offenders serving extended or life sentences would also be exempted from the scheme.
The change is expected to come into force in September, with the Justice Secretary also announcing the recruitment of 1,000 additional trainee probation officers by March and an end to the previous government's early release scheme, which saw 10,000 prisoners released up to 70 days early.
Ms Mahmood also announced a promise to recruit 1,000 additional trainee probation officers by March and an end to the previous government's early release scheme, which saw 10,000 prisoners released up to 70 days early.
Sir Keir Starmer himself has also vowed to renew efforts to curb reoffending, previously claiming too many people found themselves back in jail 'relatively quickly' after being sent there.
Last week the Prime Minister also appointed Timpsons' CEO James Timpson the new minister for Prisons, Parole and Probation as part of his plan to overhaul the sentencing system.
Mr Timpson – who will be handed a peerage to take up the role – has previously advocated for shorter sentences and has been applauded for his schemes in rehabilitating offenders.
Some facilities have been stretched beyond their limits for over a decade, including scandal-hit HMP Wandsworth, the scene of an escape by terror suspect Daniel Khalife last year , as well as a prison guard being caught on video having sex with an inmate last month
HMP Wandsworth (pictured) is one of the most overcrowded prisons in the country, running at more than 150% capacity
He employs 650 ex-offenders, who he refers to as 'someone with prison experience', in the Timpson family firm.
In 2021, he wrote: 'Frankly, it is crazy we still lock up more of our fellow citizens than almost any other European country. If we don't do everything we can to help people get a job and a place to live on release, we're only hurting ourselves twice over.'
And earlier this year, Mr Timpson said Britain was 'addicted to punishment' and suggested only a third of inmates should 'definitely' be behind bars.
The Ministry of Justice already pledged to build six new prisons to create an extra 20,000 places as demand grows for cell spaces.
Labour has said it wants to build more facilities, but whether the programme will continue as planned since the change in government remains to be seen.
A Government spokesperson told MailOnline: 'The prison system is in crisis – with record numbers of offenders behind bars.
'This is putting significant pressure on the whole justice system and turning prisons into a breeding ground for more crime.
'We will get a grip of the situation so we can lock up the most dangerous offenders, protect the public and make our prisons safer for hard-working staff.'
Following the escape of ex-soldier and alleged Iranian spy Khalife from HMP Wandsworth last year, a spotlight was shone onto the overcrowding situation in British prisons.
The jail, built in the 1850s, was described in a report before his escape as 'overcrowded, crumbling and vermin-infested'.
Mark Leech, editor of the Prisons Handbook for England and Wales, said that staff shortages in prisons and lower security in certain areas may have played a part in Khalife's successful escape.
As well as being overcrowded, prisons are understaffed.
Total staff levels now are around 5% below what they were in 2009/10, with just shy of 24,000 frontline officers currently employed.
The Strangeways riot began on April 1, 1990 and lasted for 25 days, with inmates trashing the jail and sitting on the roof to protest about poor conditions
It means the number of prisoners per operational staff member has increased to 3.8 in June 2023, from an estimated 3.5 in 2010, says the Institute for Government.
Analysis from the think tank also shows that prisons are losing experienced frontline staff who and they are not being replaced with those of equal experience.
Twenty-nine per cent of band 3-5 frontline prison officers, supervisors and managers had 20 or more years of experience in 2012/13. This nearly halved to 16 per cent in 2022/23.
Charlie Taylor, the chief inspector of prisons, last year warned that overcrowding had led to 'deprivation, squalor and [a] risk of further violence'.
His recent inspection of HMP Bedford found paint peeling off the walls of dirty cells, scraped and battered doors and, in one part of the prison, a 'cockroach game' where prisoners recorded how many of the pests they had seen.
Nick Hardwick, ex-chief inspector of prisons, earlier this year cautioned the situation could spark riots similar to that of Strangeways in 1990.
The Strangeways riot lasted for 25 days, with inmates trashing the jail and sitting on the roof to protest about poor conditions. One prisoner died and 147 officers injured, while rioters caused £133million of damage.
