Boris Johnson has been deemed “bumbling and incompetent” after the Government made a last-minute turnaround on its crime policy.
As the Prime Minister emerged from his 10-day isolation at Chequers to launch his new beating crime plan, officials scrambled to delete an announcement focused on curbing reoffending rates.
The new commitment was made in response to the Carol Black Review on drugs and may have appeared contrary to Mr Johnson’s new proposals.
The now-deleted response vowed to ensure 75% of prisoners with a drug related problem will engage in treatment three weeks after their release.
Labour has called for answers as to why the Government rolled back on their initial announcement.
The now-deleted response said: “The government will ensure 75% of prisoners with a substance problem engage in treatment within 3 weeks post-release by the end of this Parliament.
“Through funding set out in the section below, this expands the number of places available for people serving tough community sentences, with a mandatory requirement to engage in drug treatment, making those sentences more effective and tackling the underlying causes of crime.”
The new version of the government’s response to the Carol Black Review, added to the government website later in the day does not contain these paragraphs.
Shadow Justice Secretary David Lammy said: “The government’s incoherent launch to its crime campaign is typical of Boris Johnson ’s bumbling and incompetent approach to tackling crime on our streets.
“11 years of cuts to the justice system and drug treatment services as well as the Conservatives’ failed privatisation of the probation service has resulted in almost half of all adult offenders being re-convicted within one year of being released.
“The government’s failed ideology is creating new victims of crime and letting criminals off the hook.
"The Police Federation has publicly lost confidence in his Home Secretary, the delays in the courts are at a record high and rape convictions are at a record low.
"Under Boris Johnson, criminals have never had it so good.”
A Government spokesperson said: “Drugs ruin lives and are major drivers of burglaries, violent crime and reoffending.
“That is why the Beating Crime Plan and our response to Dame Carol Black’s Review recognises the need to address the underlying causes of crime through a dual approach of stepped up enforcement and recovery.
“This includes increased funding for drugs rehabilitation treatment for offenders in prison so they can turn their back on crime for good.”
Mr Johnson’s crime will see the extension of a pilot announced earlier this year which involves burglars and thieves being made to wear GPS tags on release from prison.
