David Lammy has been ridiculed in a new AI video as ‘not that competent’ following the release of another migrant sex offender under his watch.
A manhunt is underway for Algerian national Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, 24, who was freed from HMP Wandsworth, alongside British fraudster Billy Smith, 35.
The Justice Secretary came under fire in the Commons yesterday over his refusal to confirm the criminal migrant was at large.
A new song has now made the rounds starring Mr Lammy, titled Oops I Freed Them Again – a parody of the Britney Spears classic.
The rendition features Mr Lammy in a red latex skintight suit, with the chorus beginning: ‘Oops I freed them again. Played dumb in the house. Then shouted with pain. Oh Lammy, Lammy. Oh I said “get a grip”. Blamed staff on the strip. I’m not that competent.’
Mr Lammy had been aware of the release of Kaddour-Cherif when asked at prime minister’s questions yesterday.
Allies to the Labour minister claimed he had chosen not to read out a prepared statement as he was concerned about pre-empting an announcement from the Metropolitan Police.
But their defence was categorically rejected by Met insiders who said they would have had no issue with the Justice Secretary confirming the accidental release.
A new song has now made the rounds starring Mr Lammy, titled Oops I Freed Them Again – a parody of the Britney Spears classic
The rendition features Mr Lammy in a red latex skintight suit, with the chorus beginning: ‘Oops I freed them again’
(L-R) Brahim Kaddour-Cherif and William Smith who were both mistakenly released from HMP Wandsworth in error
Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick today claimed on BBC Radio 4 Mr Lammy had spent the morning after he was told of the mistaken release going out ‘shopping for a suit’.
The Conservative minister said: ‘This is a complete and utter shambles. The second convicted sex offender illegal migrant in two weeks has been released accidentally from one of our prisons despite the fact that the Justice Secretary after the first incident came to Parliament and said that he was putting in place the most robust checks to ensure this never happened again. I think it’s a disgrace.’
Police are trying to track down the Algerian national, Kaddour-Cherif, who was freed by accident from HMP Wandsworth last Wednesday.
They are also searching for Smith who was accidentally released from the same south-west London prison on Monday.
Reports emerged which suggested Mr Lammy was aware of Kaddour-Cherif’s release and had prepared to address it when he filled in for Sir Keir Starmer at Prime Minister’s Questions, but did not.
Mr Lammy, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, repeatedly failed to tell MPs whether any more asylum seekers had been mistakenly released from jail since the case of Epping hotel migrant Hadush Kebatu.
The story broke as PMQs were ending, and a comment released on Mr Lammy’s behalf said he was ‘absolutely outraged’ over Kaddour-Cherif’s release.
Mr Lammy is understood to have been briefed about the case on Tuesday night, and The Times newspaper reported he had a statement ready to read out if the news broke, but did not do so for fear of pre-empting the Metropolitan Police.
Mr Lammy, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, repeatedly failed to tell MPs whether any more asylum seekers had been mistakenly released from jail since the case of Epping hotel migrant Hadush Kebatu. Pictured: A still from the new AI video
Reports emerged which suggested Mr Lammy was aware of Kaddour-Cherif’s release and had prepared to address it when he filled in for Sir Keir Starmer at Prime Minister’s Questions, but did not
Kaddour-Cherif is serving a sentence at Wandsworth for trespass with intent to steal, but had previously also been convicted for indecent exposure
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Fury as Lammy stonewalls questions from MPs over whether another foreign prisoner had been freed
The newspaper also said Mr Lammy rejected calls from Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to return to the Commons and give a statement on the error as aides believed it would be ‘career suicide’.
The Ministry of Justice defended Mr Lammy’s actions, and pinned the blame on the ‘crisis’ facing prisons.
A spokesman said: ‘The crisis in the prison system this Government inherited is such that basic information about individual cases can take unacceptably long to reach ministers.
‘On entering the House, facts were still emerging about the case and the DPM (Deputy Prime Minister) had not been accurately informed of key details including the offender’s immigration status.’
Kaddour-Cherif is serving a sentence at Wandsworth for trespass with intent to steal, but had previously also been convicted for indecent exposure.
He was freed from the prison, which was put into special measures last year, on October 29, but the mistake was only reported to the Metropolitan Police on Tuesday, the force said.
The Algerian national is understood to not be an asylum seeker, but is in the process of being deported after he overstayed his visa.
Smith, who has links to the Woking area, was freed on Monday, and had been sentenced to 45 months for multiple fraud offences on the same day he was accidentally freed.
The new song is titled Ooops… I Freed Them Again – and is a satire of the Britney Spears 2000 classic
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Top police chief warns of a Labour soft justice crimewave as TWO inmates are released by mistake
The BBC reported that a clerical error by a court had led to his release, as he was listed as receiving a suspended sentence, rather than one in custody.
A string of influential figures in the justice system have warned that the state of UK prisons has made mistaken releases more likely.
Andy Slaughter, the Labour chair of the Commons justice committee, said the events ‘speak to a wider justice system at breaking point’.
He added: ‘While the day-to-day running of prison security and public safety are paramount, the current spate of releases in error will be repeated until the underlying failures are addressed.’
Mark Fairhurst, national chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association, said austerity had an impact on the prisons system.
‘Prisons are not vote winners… after 14 years of austerity and cuts, well, let’s be honest, cuts have consequences. And this is the fruition of those cuts,’ he said.
Police chiefs have warned Labour’s soft-justice reforms will unleash a crimewave on the streets.
National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), Gavin Stephens, said in the aftermath of the releases that things would only get worse as thousands more criminals will soon be on the streets, leaving taxpayers footing an extra £400million bill in police costs next year.
Gavin Stephens, head of the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), has warned of a crimewave
A manhunt has been launched for an Algerian prisoner who was released by mistake from Wandsworth prison
Forces are preparing for a spike in crime across the country next year when the Government goes ahead with plans to jail fewer offenders by ditching shorter sentences and releasing inmates earlier.
In a stark prediction of the dangers posed by the proposed Sentencing Bill, police leaders estimate crime will surge by up to 6 per cent in just a year, putting the public and victims at increased risk.
Mr Stephens revealed that while forces were braced for a rise in reoffending, the Government had yet to produce any evaluation of the reform consequences. MPs and victims campaigners demanded assurances about public safety as shadow home secretary Chris Philp hit out at Keir Starmer, saying: ‘This will be a crimewave made in Downing Street. The justice system is falling apart under Labour.’
The NPCC calculated that the Sentencing Bill will result in crime rising by between 4 and 6 per cent – around 360,000 additional crimes a year on top of the 6.6 million offences recorded in the 12 months to June 2025.
‘We think that is £400million worth of pressure on policing,’ Mr Stephens said. ‘There is no doubt in the short term that there will be an increase (in crime).’ Mr Philp said: ‘This shocking disclosure by the police makes clear that Labour’s weak and reckless plans to release more prisoners early and abolish prison sentences under a year will lead to more criminals on our streets and more crime.
‘Labour’s choices will make us less safe and will mean more robberies, thefts and assaults.’
Mr Stephens warned that jailing fewer criminals will result in officers having to divert from tackling other crimes to deal with reoffending, adding: ‘You might have a neighbourhood police officer who’s making good progress on a local problem-solving plan, and they’ve got to drop that to go deal with a recall or process somebody that’s just been arrested.’
When asked about the long-term impact on crime rates, the senior officer said no one in government had been able to work that out and no extra funding had been allocated to forces to deal with the influx of criminals serving their sentence in the community instead of behind bars.
Mr Stephens acknowledged that reforms were needed, saying: ‘It’s no secret that the criminal justice system is not working as it should.
‘The pressure on police, courts, prisons and probation cannot continue – which is why we support the Government’s ambition to overhaul sentencing and relieve the prison crowding crisis.’
But he predicted: ‘There will be an impact on confidence in criminal justice.’
