Top cop Andy Prophet has given a reassurance that Hertfordshire Constabulary will seek to put anyone who reoffends after being released early from prison back behind bars.

The early release scheme has been drawn up by the Government to address overcrowding in prisons.

On Tuesday (August 25) it was discussed at the Hertfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner's latest accountability and performance meeting, where PCC Jonathan Ash-Edwards asked Mr Prophet about an open letter that he and other chief constables around the country had sent to Prime Minister Andy Burnham.

Mr Prophet highlighted plans that were being put in place in Hertfordshire in response to the scheduled early release of prisoners.

"The reassurance I would give you, commissioner, is that where individuals are released early, if they reoffend we will be on their back and we will arrest them and seek to put then back in prison, " he said.

"I hope we don't have to. But we absolutely recognise that we may have to. And we will."

The chief constable told the commissioner the constabulary was already making plans for more officers – from the offender management and neighbourhood policing teams – "to manage the consequences of criminals being let out of prison early to make sure they don't continue to commit crime".

He acknowledged this would take them away from work they would otherwise be doing.

"The simple fact is that if we have to manage more people with a propensity to commit crime in the community, it is more work for officers to do," he said.

"We don't shy away from that. I simply point out the fact that if there is more work in the community, [then] more resource and more people across police, probation and other services would be incredibly helpful."

The letter to the PM signed by Mr Prophet and other chief constables asked for all lawful options to be examined to determine whether the earlier release of two men responsible for the death of PC Andrew Harper could be prevented.

In August 2019, PC Harper was killed in Berkshire in the line of duty when, responding to a report of a burglary, he was dragged behind a car for a mile. In July 2020, three teenage males were found guilty of manslaughter and received sentences of 16 and 13 years' imprisonment. Two of them are due for early release.

The letter called on the Government to establish "an additional public protection safeguard" whenever changes to sentencing or to release arrangements for the most serious offenders are considered. It said victims and bereaved families should be "properly considered" in such circumstances.

Mr Prophet said: "I signed a letter, with every other chief constable in the country, to the Prime Minister fundamentally raising two issues.

"Number one, that it cannot be right that the killers of PC Harper are released early, because of the violent and abhorrent crime they have committed. That simply cannot be right.

"And more broadly, this is not just about the killers of PC Harper.

"Equally, as chief constables, we believe it cannot be right that similarly violent and dangerous offenders are released from prison early.

"The public should expect – as I think you and I would expect – people convicted of those types of offences serve the sentence they are given. This is driven by the need to keep communities safe.

"So I am really pleased that myself and my colleagues are so clear and single-minded on this issue."

He continued: "It is fair to say the Government has responded positively to the letter. There have been further conversations with the policing minister and a wider network of stakeholders within the Home Office and Ministry of Justice. Those conversations are ongoing."

The chief constable said that there was a need for greater investment in the criminal justice system.

"My assessment of this, commissioner, to be perfectly candid, is that the criminal justice system is in need of significant investment [and there] has been under-investment probably for a decade and a half or more.

"I don't in any way undermine the complexities of the problems the Prime Minister and the Government are grappling with.

"There is not enough prison space. There's not enough capacity in the probation service to deal with offenders in the community. There are not enough outreach workers to deal with mental health, drug and alcohol concerns.

"All of these things are true, but it is only Government that can make a decision to reinvest in those things, which in my professional and personal view is needed."

Mr Ash-Edwards said he welcomed the points made by the chief constables in their open letter to the PM and that they were reflected in conversations he had had with partners throughout the criminal justice system.