Lawyers representing prisoners serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences have issued a formal 'letter before action' to Justice Secretary Alex Norris. This legal step serves as a precursor to a potential judicial review, arguing that the government’s continued detention of individuals under these terms is legally indefensible. The action follows a report from a United Nations human rights watchdog, which concluded that the indefinite nature of these sentences constitutes a violation of human rights and that those currently held are being detained unlawfully.

IPP sentences were officially abolished in 2012, but the change was not applied retroactively. This has left thousands of individuals in a legal limbo, where they remain incarcerated indefinitely despite having served their original minimum terms. Critics of the policy, including the legal team behind this challenge, argue that the system is arbitrary and fails to provide a clear path to release. The government has yet to issue a formal response to the specific legal threat, though the Ministry of Justice has previously maintained that public safety remains the primary concern when reviewing the release of high-risk offenders. The legal challenge seeks to force the government to address the status of these prisoners in light of the UN's findings, potentially setting the stage for a significant shift in how these historic sentences are managed.