The United Kingdom is launching a world-first crackdown to restrict the freedom of serious sexual and violent offenders after their release from prison.
New “restriction zones” will be mapped out in England and Wales, allowing probation services to limit the movements of dangerous criminals to just a few miles.
The government stated the measure was shaped by the experiences and campaigning of victims, whose input will determine how individual zones are drawn up.
The scheme, announced on Wednesday, August 26 is a stricter version of “exclusion zones,” which ban offenders from specific locations such as a victim’s home or place of work.
Former convicts subject to GPS monitoring risk being returned to prison if authorities confirm they have flouted the new regulations taking effect from October.
The Secretary of State for Justice stated that perpetrators of serious crimes will be confined to tightly controlled areas because no victim should have to fear the shadow of an abuser.
“Those who step outside the boundaries can be quickly identified (with GPS) and face being sent back to prison. Offenders should carry the consequences of their crimes, not their victims,” he said.
Officials have vowed to keep the most dangerous offenders behind bars, while changes to the release dates of convicts convicted of murder, rape, serious child sexual abuse, and grooming offences have been blocked.
The government is also working to ensure faster deportation of foreign criminals, better use of the women’s prison estate, and a review of the “unjust” Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences.
Since 2024, the UK has expanded electronic monitoring and recruited 3,600 new probation officers, keeping lawbreakers under closer observation and better protecting victims.