A petition demanding that two men convicted of killing PC Andrew Harper remain behind bars has surpassed one million signatures, as politicians from across the Thames Valley urged the prime minister to block their release after the government's early-release scheme was announced last week.
Fifty police chiefs wrote to Andy Burnham calling for every lawful option to prevent Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers from being freed in January, halfway through their 13-year manslaughter sentences. Burnham said he would not forgive himself if he failed to lessen the anguish of Harper's family, and has ordered Justice Secretary Alex Norris to draw up plans to free up prison space for serious offenders, with announcements expected when Parliament returns in September.
Harper's mother, Debbie Adlam, said she had received a call from Downing Street and now had "a little bit of hope". Burnham said he was increasingly confident that measures to increase prison capacity could prevent early release for the most serious offenders.