Breaking News English

The new government in the UK is [having / had] to deal with a serious crisis in its prison system. The new Labour administration made the decision on Friday to [release / issue] thousands of prisoners before the convicts had finished serving their [paragraph / sentence] . Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer attributed the [mess / messy] in Britain's prisons service to a decade of [neglect / infection] and underinvestment under the previous Conservative Party, which had been [in / on] power for 14 years. The prisoner population is nearly [as / at] capacity. Inmates are having to be released early to accommodate newly sentenced [talons / felons] . Some will be released having served just 40 per cent of their [time / hours] . Mr Starmer said the problem was "pretty unforgivable, [on / in] my book".

The UK's justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, warned of a "[totally / total] breakdown in law and order" if prisons reached [capability / capacity] . Ms Mahmood said: "Prisons are on the point [to / of] collapse". If space ran out, there would be nowhere to put those [attested / arrested] or newly sentenced. The justice system would be overloaded. Mahmood said there would be "looters running [agog / amok] , smashing windows, robbing shops and setting neighbourhoods [alright / alight] ". There are currently only 1,451 places available. She blamed [firmer / former] leader Rishi Sunak and prisons ministers for a "[dereliction / dedication] of duty" and for decimating the system. She called them: "The [guilty / guilt] men who put their political careers ahead [at / of] the safety and security of our country."