A colossal reputational repair job is desperately needed after Kebatu debacle

Shoulders will have begun to fall in Number 10 today after the news broke that the convicted sex offender somehow released in error has been arrested and is back in custody.

But whether Hadush Kebatu is behind bars or not, and whether he is deported or not, the political damage has been done. According to government figures from July, 262 prisoners were released in error in England and Wales between March 2024 and March 2025, up from 115 the previous year, a 128% increase.

And there are several previous incidences of dangerous sex attackers being mistakenly released from prison and then going on to attack other women while still at large - just google William Fernandez or Joseph McCann. Live updates on the arrest There is no suggestion he's committed major offences while he was freed, but the judge in his trial said there was a risk of him reoffending - making it all the more concerning he was released accidentally.

Despite being a shocking and almost unbelievable turn of events - if you pitched this storyline you'd be laughed out the room for it being so far-fetched - these kinds of mistakes are far too common and speak to a wider problem in the creaking criminal justice system. Senior government sources admit to me that not only was this saga incredibly embarrassing for government, but it also feeds a narrative that Britain isn't working and the state cannot fulfil basic functions.

Read more:Kebatu is second person freed by mistake from HMP ChelmsfordWrongly-released migrant 'tried to return to prison 4 or 5 times' And it is this impression of state incompetency and political failure that reflects so poorly on Starmer's premiership when he promised an end to Tory chaos and to bolster and improve public services… prison system included. With 14 years in power, there is no denying the state of the prison system in the UK is the responsibility of the Conservative Party too.

But the public want to see action now, and it is the Labour Party that is in government. And with small boats crossings at record levels this year already, a migrant sent to France on the one-in-one-out scheme coming back on a small boat for the second time, and a convicted sex offender on the loose for two days, a colossal reputational repair job is desperately needed.

It took 48 hours to find Kebatu. It will take far longer to convince the public this government has a grip on public services and can be trusted to keep us all safe..