Lord Timpson quits government

Timpson was appointed to the role in July 2024 after leaving his job as chief executive of the Timpson Group, the retailer which provides key cutting and shoe repair services, and employs hundreds of former prisoners. 

His appointment was greeted at the time as “radical” and “innovative” by some in the Labour Party, but the BBC has seen his departure statement in which Timpson said he was leaving his post.

The statement does not explicitly give Timpson’s reason for stepping down, but the BBC reported he feels he has “done as much as he can in the role”. 

In his resignation statement, Timpson said: “Our prisons and probation service is in a much healthier and happier state than two years ago”.

He added: “I’m proud to have become the longest-serving minister in this role for 15 years. I’m also proud that 75% of prisons and 90% of probation teams are now performing better than when I started.

“Self-harm, violence and assaults on staff are all down, and fewer people are leaving prison without a home to go to, a measure of dignity I care about deeply.”

He also pointed to the Women’s Justice Board he established, saying he “believe[s] most women should not be in prison at all” and “diverting them away from custody, helping them with often chaotic, damaged, and addicted lives, is one of the changes I’m proud to have achieved”.

A source in the Ministry of Justice told the BBC: “We’re gutted he’s going, but the new person is going to have their work cut out to get their head round what’s round the corner.”