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Electronic monitoring of offenders is not working as intended, creating public protection risks, according to a report by the watchdog the NAO (National Audit Office).
Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: โElectronic monitoring is central to managing pressures on prisons, but it is not working effectively, creating risks to public protection. Improvements are required to ensure that those who should be monitored are monitored and that breaches are responded to effectively. The MoJ and HMPPS should address the inefficiencies and risks identified in our report before expanding electronic monitoring.โ
The Electronic Monitoring population in England and Wales increased, the NAO noted, from around 13,400 in January 2021 to 28,700 by March 2026. For the 60-page report visit the NAO website. Inefficiencies persist across the system, wasting staff time and taxpayersโ money, the auditors found.ย The number of tag breaches that result in enforcement action ids unknown. Nor is it certain what number of individuals are not being monitored despite an active tagging requirement.
Timeline
In October 2023, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) awarded new contracts to: Serco, to fit tags and monitor tagged individuals; and Allied Universal Electronic Monitoring (Allied), to supply the tags and monitoring system. This followed the reprocurement of the electronic monitoring service as part of its 2021โ2026 electronic monitoring expansion programme. The new service went live in May 2024, with a transition period as the new suppliers took over and moved services onto new systems and devices. But by mid-2025, MoJ and HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) acknowledged there had been significant performance issues, including long delays in fitting tags.
In September 2025, the Ministry announced plans to significantly expand electronic monitoring. This expansion would be part of the Sentencing Act 2026, which aims to ease prison pressures by managing more offenders in the community. It estimated that up to 22,000 additional individuals would be tagged each year from 2027, placing further strain on a system that had already been performing poorly.
Background
Tagging is typically used for prison leavers on home detention curfew; and those on bail from court. The tags generate alerts if an offender breaches certain conditions, for example, leaving home during curfew. Serco operates a 24-hour monitoring centre and notifies officials (police, probation) of potential breaches. The report noted that Sercoโs contract does not require it to provide officials with details of an individualsโ breach until 29 to 53 hours after it occurs. According to the report, probation and police staff report that poor quality information and capacity constraints limit their ability to respond promptly to breaches.
Cost
HMPPS estimates that monitoring a tagged individual costs on average ยฃ4,900 per year.
