HMI Chief Inspector Martin Jones is expressing huge concern about the workload for probation following the decision on early releases. 

Martin makes two interesting suggestions:

1. To suspend supervision of people released following short custodial sentences including shop lifting. This seems sensible and prompts the obvious questions: 

* As we know that short sentences are disproportionately harmful in long term effects isn't it time to legislate to limit the use of short sentences? 

* How many people are sentenced to imprisonment for shoplifting? Is this the most appropriate sentence - not least because the majority of these will be short sentences? More use should be made of community sentences to reduce the numbers in prison and subsequently released on supervised licence.

2 . Transfer supervision of 18 to 21 year olds to Youth Justice. We think there is mileage in looking at the 18 to 21 year old interface. This is a critical transition period for young people needing continuing support and could benefit from more shared work between probation and youth justice. We would be wary of wholesale shifts of cohorts between services without very careful consideration. 

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