Andy Burnham’s decision to pause the plan for the early release of prisoners is a “good start” but “not enough”, the mother of police officer Andrew Harper has said. Under the new Sentencing Act set to come into force in September, some 6,000 criminals were due to be released under the early prison release scheme. The family of Pc Harper criticised the fact that two of his killers were being considered for early release. “It’s a good start, and it really is a good basis to begin working on some sensible alternatives and looking at options for going forward, because there’s so many people this affects, it’s not just us. Lissie Harper, Pc Harper’s widow, described the scheme as “deplorable”.