// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
How can Andy Burnham stop PC Harper's killers being released early?
PC Harper was killed on duty in 2019, just four weeks after getting married
Just three weeks after becoming prime minister, Andy Burnham is already unpicking a key piece of legislation passed under his predecessor Sir Keir Starmer.
The Sentencing Act 2026 was designed to produce a semi-permanent solution to the prisons overcrowding crisis, by releasing large numbers of prisoners earlier than had been previously planned.
After ordering a review, Burnham announced that he would exclude most rapists, child sex offenders and members of grooming gangs from the legislation.
But that left many people convicted of manslaughter still eligible for early release, including two of the men convicted of the manslaughter of PC Andrew Harper - prompting outcry from his family and former colleagues.
Burnham now says he is "increasingly confident" of being able to prevent the early release of "other serious offenders" including PC Harper's killers.
But how might he do that and why have the options he is looking at been previously rejected?
The prison population in England and Wales on 10 August was 86,536, which was 97% of the total capacity.
For decades politicians have been encouraging longer and longer sentences, but have not built the prisons to match.
If the prisons get completely full, courts will not be able to sentence murderers, rapists and other violent offenders. People suspected of the worst crimes will also have to be released instead of being held in custody ahead of their trials.