Police are preparing for a surge in crime if the Labour government's plans to overhaul prison sentences go ahead - with hundreds of thousands more offences expected in a year.

Measures proposed under the Sentencing Bill , intended to ease overcrowding in prisons , include limiting the use of short prison sentences and releasing some convicted criminals earlier.

However, police chiefs are warning such measures could see up to a 6% rise in crime in the immediate aftermath, should the plans become law.

It comes as a manhunt is under way for two prisoners mistakenly released from HMP Wandsworth, including Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, a 24-year-old Algerian man and registered sex offender, and 35-year-old William Smith.

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