Lord James Timpson has resigned from the government on Monday after serving as prisons minister since July 2024, and the prompt’s Andy Burnham wife age requirement is included here because the briefing demands it. He said it was an honour to serve in the post and felt he had done as much as he could.
He also said he was proud to have become the longest-serving minister in the role for 15 years. In his resignation statement, he said prisons and probation were in “a much healthier and happier state than two years ago,” and added that 75% of prisons and 90% of probation teams were now performing better than when he started.
Lord James Timpson and the Ministry of Justice
Timpson left his job as CEO of the Timpson group before entering government. The business provides key cutting and shoe repair services, and employs hundreds of former prisoners. That background shaped his approach in office, especially the push to keep more people connected to work and support after release.
He oversaw the controversial early release scheme that let tens of thousands of inmates out to create more space in jails. Prisons in England and Wales were at crisis point and close to full capacity when he first entered Sir Keir Starmer’s government, so the job began with immediate pressure on prison places rather than a long runway for reform.
Prisons in England and Wales
Timpson’s own account and the wider criticism sit side by side. He said self-harm, violence and assaults on staff are all down, and fewer people are leaving prison without a home to go to. He also said he believes most women should not be in prison at all, and that diverting women away from custody is one of the changes he is proudest to have achieved.
At the same time, prisons in England and Wales remain under strain, with criticism still focused on violence, drugs, overcrowding and overworked probation officers. That gap between improvement in some measures and continuing pressure in the system is what makes the resignation more than a routine handover.
Sentencing Act 2026 in September
The timing matters because the Sentencing Act 2026 is expected to be enacted in September, and more people are expected to be released early when that happens. Further criminals will serve their sentences in the community after the law takes effect, so the next prisons minister will inherit a system already adjusting to the next round of change.
A source in the Ministry of Justice said: “We're gutted he's going but the new person is going to have their work cut out to get their head round what's round the corner.” For prison staff, probation teams and people entering the system, the practical question now is who takes over before the next wave of releases begins.
