Labour minister handed GB News grilling as hundreds of sex offenders set to walk free from prison: 'Where's the thinking?!'

Watch the moment Breakfast host Ellie Costello grilled Labour minister Alex Davies-Jones on the Government's plans to release hundreds of sex offenders early as part of their latest prison reforms.

Speaking to GB News, the Victims and Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Minister declared that violence against women and girls is a "national emergency" – despite planning to release such offenders.

Labour's abolition of imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentences will lead to hundreds of sex criminals being released.

Of the 700 IPP prisoners, 379 individuals have never been freed, while the remaining 321 were returned to prison for either committing new offences or violating their parole conditions.

Amid Labour's IPP reforms, the Government has also announced plans to introduce specialist rape courts across Britain, something Prime Minister Andy Burnham said is "long overdue".

Justice Secretary Alex Norris said the £23million move will "ensure specialist rape and serious sexual offences courts in every Crown Court by 2028".

Challenging Ms Davies-Jones, Ellie questioned the contrast between the two policies and asked: "Where's the joined-up thinking there?

"Are we protecting women and girls by putting away more rapists but then releasing more onto the streets?"

Ms Davies-Jones responded: "We're protecting everyone in our nation by making sure that there will always be a prison place available for someone who needs it.

"And with respect, I will take no lectures from a Conservative Party who broke our criminal justice system and called the General Election to get away from the crisis in our prisons."

The Labour minister assured that the Government is being "responsible and transparent" with Britons about their policies.

She explained: "We inherited that crisis, and we are being responsible and transparent with the public about the measures that we need to take in order to get to grips with this.

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"You will know that the Government has exempted many serious offences from the early release scheme, whether that be rape, unlawful killing, child grooming, child sexual assault."

Ms Davies-Jones assured GB News viewers: "But we also are putting in place special measures for when these perpetrators are released from prison, because release does not mean freedom.

"So whether that be ensuring tagging is available on release, whether that be wilful restriction zones in place, but also timely victim communication and support available for victims and survivors who need that extra support and reassurance and information about their perpetrators' release."

Pressed on the Government's plans for specialist rape courts across Britain, Ellie questioned how the plan will "work in practice", given the current immense backlog of court cases.

Ms Davies-Jones responded: "There are currently over 80 buildings across England and Wales that are used to hear Crown Court cases, with roughly 500 courtrooms. We are determined and are committing to ensure that every one of those buildings will have at least one dedicated courtroom to hear these specific offences.

"We're also working with the judiciary to stop these cases from being floated, that means when a case is floated, they're not given a specific date or time, they're just slotted in whenever there's availability. That doesn't work for these types of crimes, because victims and survivors need certainty in order to plan."

An MoJ spokeswoman told GB News: "While we must end the unfairness of these sentences for those who have more than served their time, we know some IPP prisoners will still pose a risk to communities.

"That's why we will work cross-party and with experts in this field to make sure we get this right. It will take time, and public safety will be at the centre of our approach."