Justice Secretary David Lammy has said he was “not equipped with all the detail” about a mistaken prisoner release when he appeared at PMQs, and said the Government had a “mountain to climb” in tackling the prisons crisis.
Police are trying to track down Algerian national Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, 24, who was accidentally freed from HMP Wandsworth last Wednesday, October 29.
Another prisoner, Billy Smith, 35, who was also accidentally freed from the same prison on Monday, has handed himself back in.
Mr Lammy has faced scrutiny over his handling of the mistaken release of the second foreign prisoner after he refused to answer questions put to him on the issue in the House of Commons on Wednesday.
The Justice Secretary refused to confirm repeatedly at Prime Minister’s Questions, when he was standing in for Sir Keir Starmer, whether any more asylum seekers had been wrongly released since Hadush Kebatu, the now-deported migrant at the heart of protests in Epping, Essex.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, he said: “I took the judgment that it is important when updating the House and the country about serious matters like this that you have all of the detail.
“I was not equipped with all of the detail and the danger is that you end up misleading the house and the general public. So, that is the judgment I took, and I think it’s the right judgment.”
It is understood Kaddour-Cherif is not an asylum seeker but is in the process of being deported after he overstayed his visa.
Mr Lammy said he found out about the mistake on Wednesday morning but the detail was released just after he had finished PMQs.
The story broke as PMQs were ending, and a comment released on Mr Lammy’s behalf said he was “absolutely outraged” over Kaddour-Cherif’s release.
Earlier on Thursday, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said there has been “an explosion in accidental prisoner releases” as she branded Mr Lammy’s performance at Prime Minister’s Questions “embarrassing”.
Asked whether he misled the House, Mrs Badenoch replied: “It’s quite clear that he had answers which he refused to give.
“I think that all of that is going to come out in the wash.
“I think that it was a very embarrassing session for him deputising for the Prime Minister.”
Kaddour-Cherif’s mistaken release came just days after stronger security checks were announced for prisons and an independent investigation was launched into releases in error following the blunder in Kebatu’s case.
The Epping migrant jailed for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl and a woman was accidentally freed from prison instead of being sent to an immigration detention centre last month. He was later traced and deported.
The error brought to light concerns over the rising number of prisoners released in error, as latest Government figures show 262 prisoners were released in error in the year to March 2025 – a 128% increase on 115 in the previous 12 months.
The Prison Governors Association (PGA) described releases in error as “neither rare nor hidden”, but said on Thursday the scale was “deeply concerning”.
On a visit to HMP Gartree in Leicestershire, Mr Lammy said Kaddour-Cherif was freed before the tougher checks started, while Smith’s case was a court error.
The Cabinet minister told reporters: “We have found out that the release that has caused concern this week was actually before I introduced those checks just a few weeks ago following the release of Kebatu, and the other prisoner was a court mistake, not in fact, a prison mistake.”
Mr Lammy had confirmed on October 27 that stronger release checks will come into force immediately, two days before Kaddour-Cherif was released on October 29.
The Justice Secretary added: “But the truth is, I’ve been in post two months. The rate of release by error is too high, it has to come down. That’s why I’ve asked Dame Lynne Owens to look at this.
“And this is a paper-based system that obviously involves human error.
“This has now gone on for a generation. Our prison system is in crisis, so we have to bear down on this, but we have a mountain to climb.”
Mr Lammy was speaking at the site where construction has begun for a new jail, HMP Welland Oaks, which is planned to house 1,700 prisoners.
The category B facility is part of the Government’s promise to build 14,000 extra prison places by 2031.
The expansion forms part of ministers plans to tackle prison overcrowding in the long term, alongside fresh legislation introduced to Parliament in September.
The number of prisoners in England and Wales was 86,888 as of November 3 this year – 1,633 lower than the previous record high of 88,521, which was reached on September 6 2024.
The Metropolitan Police is continuing to appeal to the public over the whereabouts of Kaddour-Cherif, who the force believes is still in London just over a week after his release.
The Met said on social media: “We are actively searching for Brahim Kaddour-Cherif who was released in error from HMP Wandsworth on Wednesday 29 October.
“He is believed to be in London and has links to Tower Hamlets and Westminster. If you see him, please call 999 immediately.”
Kaddour-Cherif was serving a sentence at HMP Wandsworth for trespass with intent to steal, but had previously been convicted for indecent exposure.
