NAO Finds 8,900 Offenders Untagged in England and Wales as Monitoring Expansion Looms
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 10
NAO Finds 8,900 Offenders Untagged in England and Wales as Monitoring Expansion Looms
1 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 10
Summary
About 8,900 people in England and Wales with active electronic monitoring orders had no tag as of March 2026, the NAO said, warning the true number slipping through the system could still be significant.
The watchdog blamed an inefficient system, saying unmonitored cases stem from data errors, fitting delays, refusals and missed tagging of people who should have been monitored.
Serco met a 95% timeliness target for fitting visits, but the NAO said tags were successfully fitted on only 62% of people visited within two attempts; police and probation teams also lacked capacity to respond quickly to breaches.
The Ministry of Justice disputed the 8,900 figure and said its review found 5,450 unmonitored individuals, while pledging £100 million for tagging upgrades and saying install rates are up nearly 50% since 2024.
The findings land as the Sentencing Act 2026 is set to push more offenders into community supervision, with ministers estimating 22,000 more people a year will need tags from 2027.
As officials consider microchipping inmates, is today's failing tagging system a preview of a dystopian surveillance future?
The tagging system is failing. Is expanding it to ease prison overcrowding a solution or a dangerous gamble with public safety?
Untagged Offenders and Overstretched Staff: The Risks Behind the UK’s Biggest Electronic Monitoring Expansion
Overview
The report highlights a critical challenge in the justice system: many offenders are not wearing their court-ordered electronic tags, which undermines public safety and compliance. The government has acknowledged inheriting a system in crisis, with too many offenders left untagged. This operational failure is linked to poor performance by key service providers like Serco, whose standards have been called unacceptable by the Ministry of Justice. In response, ministers have demanded immediate improvements and accountability from Serco. Despite these issues, the government is planning the largest expansion of electronic monitoring, raising questions about the system’s readiness for such growth.