Once is a mistake, twice is negligence, but three times? The competence and security of UK prisons are seriously raising questions due to the recurrent erroneous release of prisoners in recent weeks.

Two prisoners, 35-year-old William "Billy" Smith, a convicted fraudster, and 24-year-old Algerian man, Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, a trespasser with prior convictions for indecent exposure, were mistakenly released from London's HMP Wandsworth within a space of a week. These are convicted criminals who ought to have been safely imprisoned; they are not small-time criminals who unintentionally escaped through an open gate.

Even more concerning is that this is not the first time such an incident has occurred. In October, Hadush Kebatu was wrongfully released from HMP Chelmsford after being imprisoned for sexually abusing a woman and a 14-year-old girl. However, he was apprehended again 48 hours later. The incident, which sparked serious outrage led to the Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy pledging to tighten checks. But here we are again.

What does this indicate about the condition and security of the prisons? How can the public trust the system to rehabilitate offenders or maintain community safety if it fails to even keep track of who should be imprisoned? These kinds of errors put lives in danger and undermine confidence.

The Deputy Prime Minister’s call for an investigation is commendable, but without accountability, investigations are nothing. The question remains terrifyingly obvious until significant reform occurs: if prisons are unable to hold inmates, then who is truly safe outside?