7,300 OFFENDERS FITTED WITH ALCOHOL-MONITORING ANKLE TAGS DURING WORLD CUP

The Ministry of Justice has announced that 7,300 offenders will be subject to a drinking ban enforced through alcohol-sensitive ankle tags during the World Cup. Of this number, 5,000 offenders—either released from prison or serving community sentences—had already been fitted with the tags when the tournament began, with a further 2,300 expected to receive them throughout the event. The tags analyse a wearer's sweat continuously and alert probation officers if alcohol is consumed, distinguishing between an offender being present in a pub or fan zone and actively drinking.

Lord James Timpson, the prisons, probation and reducing reoffending minister, stated that major sporting events should unite the country rather than provide occasions for alcohol-fuelled violence and disorder. He characterised the tags as a deterrent, saying they provide offenders with a warning that breaching the ban could result in jail. The Ministry of Justice reports that since the technology was introduced in 2020, offenders subject to alcohol bans have remained sober for 97% of the days they have been tagged, according to official figures.

David Sidwick and Joy Allen, joint leads on addictions and substance misuse at the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, acknowledged that whilst major sporting events unite the nation, evidence shows violence increases around such occasions. They stated that police and crime commissioners support the use of alcohol tags as part of broader measures to rehabilitate offenders and reduce reoffending. If a tagged offender consumes alcohol, their probation officer may order their return to court or prison.