LONDON - The head of the British Prison Service, Mr Richard Tilt, last night admitted that 537 prisoners six times the number originally thought had been released early from jail last week.
Mr Tilt said that the matter had been "gravely mishandled" by the prison service and that ministers had not been properly informed about the service's revised guidelines on sentencing.
Mr Tilt, who earlier met Home Secretary Michael Howard to discuss the crisis, said that he had offered his "sincere personal apology" for the failures. Mr Howard said that he took a "very serious view" of what had happened, he had accepted Mr Tilt's apology and did not regard it as a matter for resignation.