Lord Chancellor Alex Norris announced on September 1, 2026, a £110m investment to accelerate the construction of prison places across the UK. ^[1] Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated in his first statement to the House of Commons that he is determined to end indefinite sentences. ^[2] There are still more than 2,000 prisoners locked up under IPP terms 14 years after the law was repealed, with four-fifths of them serving more than 10 years over their original sentence. ^[3] The government plans to add 14,000 extra prison spaces by 2031 to lock up dangerous criminals and keep the public safe. ^[4] The government signed a contract on September 1, 2026, to kickstart works on a new 1,700-place prison in Lancashire. ^[5] The £110m funding will be used to convert existing unused spaces within prisons, such as offices, laundry rooms, and storage areas, into cells. ^[6] Lord Blunkett, the home secretary who introduced the Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) legislation, considered it to be one of his biggest mistakes in government. ^[7] The coalition government repealed the IPP law in 2012 because it was contrary to the basic principles of justice. ^[8]