The Justice Secretary, David Lammy, has announced the Government’s intention to introduce ‘supermax-style units’ to prisons in the UK for terrorism and extremist prisoners.

Lammy’s announcement comes in response to an independent review of Separation Centres, published in August, by Jonathan Hall KC. Hall was tasked with leading the review in the wake of the violent attack on 3 members of staff of HM Prison Frankland by convicted terrorist, Hashem Abedi, in April 2025.

Separation Centres are currently located in three prisons across the UK and 26 prisoners have been placed in them since 2017. The review found that ‘a remote management system, complex policy, and fear of litigation’ have impacted on the ability of prison staff to manage risk.

Hall’s review recommends the creation of a ‘tiered Separation Centre system’ that would bring  together Separation Centre units ‘within a single prison under the control of a governor who is responsible for the day-to-day management of all Separation Centre prisoners’.

In his statement to Parliament the Justice Secretary accepted all 13 recommendations from the review and said that the government ‘will explore all available options to overhaul the system’ including ‘the creation of new, tougher super-max-style units for the most violent and disruptive prisoners’.

He went on to explain that the proposed tiered system would allow minimal internal movement which would only be permitted ‘following rigorous new risk assessments’.

He also said that the government would consider new legislation that would protect decisions by prisons staff from litigation under Article 8 of the ECHR, the right to respect for private and family life.

Supermax prisons have been common in the US for decades and have been repeatedly opposed by human rights groups due to concerns that they breech international human rights law.

The Justice Secretary’s announcement has been met by criticism, with Andrea Coomber, the chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, responding skeptically to the plan.

‘It is important to emphasise that the review has not recommended the creation of a ‘supermax’-style prison in the UK. The review rightly finds that it is not necessary to impose such a level of inhumane conditions to manage risk and prioritise safety in custody.’

‘We wait to see how the tiered approach to separation centres will be operationalised, and in particular the Howard League is concerned at proposals to water down Article 8 human rights.’ she said.