Wrongly released prisoners at large
Nearly one in six prisoners released in error in the last four years are still at large, official figures show.
A total of 148 prisoners have been released in error since May 2010 and 24 have not been put back in jail since, figures released by Justice Minister Jeremy Wright showed.
Most of them (13) were released from category C prisons, while three came from female prisons and eight remained "uncategorised".
Shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan, who uncovered the figures using a written parliamentary question, said: "Each week brings more evidence showing David Cameron's justice system is in chaos.
"I'm astounded that 148 criminals have been wrongly released from prison on this Government's watch. But to add insult to injury, 24 of them are still on the run.
"Victims will be insulted that criminals are allowed to waltz out of jail so easily, and continue to live their lives scot free.
"Communities are being put at risk by serious and dangerous criminals walking the streets when they should be safely behind bars.
"How are the British public to trust David Cameron's Government to keep them safe when they are so terrible at the basics like keeping criminals locked up?"
In the year ending September 2013 there were 46 criminals released from jail in error, accounting for 0.06% of all discharges from prison.
Mr Wright said: "Releases in error are taken very seriously and action has been taken to tighten processes and focus managers' attention in this area. Releases in error are infrequent and all incidents are subject to investigation. The majority of prisoners released in error are returned to custody quickly."
