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Robert Jenrick has suffered an embarrassing putdown in his first Commons outing as shadow justice secretary.
Hours after his appointment was confirmed by new Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, the hardline right-winger sought to attack Labour’s record in government from the despatch box.
In his first intervention in his new post, Mr Jenrick lashed out at the party’s early release scheme for prisoners to free up space in the overcrowded estate.
Mr Jenrick said that, since July’s general election, “the only group this Labour government’s popularity has increased with is criminals”.
“How many domestic abusers and sex offenders who were released under their early release scheme have gone on to reoffend, and would they like to apologise to the victims?” he asked.
But justice minister Alex Davies-Jones gave Mr Jenrick short shrift, urging him to “show some humility” and pointing to the Conservative Party’s record in government.
In a brutal riposte, Ms Davies-Jones said: “I was going to congratulate the right honourable gentleman in his role, but he seems to have a very short memory, and I believe it is he who should be apologising to the country as a whole for his government’s woeful absolute misuse of our justice system and our prisons.
“Under the previous government’s [early release] scheme, there were zero exemptions that could protect the public.
“This government put in serious exemptions to prevent sex offenders from being released onto our streets, preventing those convicted of serious violent crimes from being released onto our streets.
“And I believe the honourable gentleman should maybe have a bit of humility.”
Mr Jenrick hit back, claiming that his Conservative government built more prison places than any Labour government “in living memory”. But, with prisons overflowing, and a second wave of early prisoner releases last month, Mr Jenrick said that “we need to go further”.
In the latest example of Labour’s relentless focus on the Tory record from 2010 to 2024, Ms Davies Jones again said Mr Jenrick appeared to have “forgotten who was in power for the last 14 years and who failed to build any prison places”.
“Just 500 extra prison places were built under his government’s watch,” she added.
“We are the party of law and order, and I think the right honourable gentleman needs to look at his previous record.”
The row comes after two waves of early releases since Labour came to power saw thousands of prisoners freed early to free up space in jails.
But it was a bruising first outing for Mr Jenrick, who fell short in the contest to succeed Rishi Sunak and was offered the justice brief as a consolation prize.
His appointment was part of a bid by Ms Badenoch to reunite the Conservatives after a fractious leadership campaign.
An ally of Mr Jenrick said: “Rob thinks the party needs to come together and take the fight to Labour. Unity could not be more important. He’s eager to expose Labour’s dreadful record on law and order.”
