Record number of terrorists in British prisons as over half hold Islamist views

Some 41 terrorists were freed from jail last year - either subject to early release or deported to their country of origin

Some 41 terrorists were freed from jail last year - either subject to early release or deported to their country of origin

A record number of terrorists are now behind bars in Britain, according to new figures, with more than half of those in custody holding extreme Islamist views.

By the end of March, there were 273 criminals in prison for terrorism - the highest number since records began in 2010, when the number stood at 126.

The number is up three per cent year-on-year and has surpassed the peak recorded at the end of 2025 at 267 behind bars.

The “vast majority” held "Islamist-extremist" views at 58 per cent (159) of all those serving time, while 29 per cent (80) had "extreme right-wing beliefs", according to Home Office data.

Meanwhile, 12 per cent (34) were classed as holding “other” ideologies, including left-wing extremist, dissident Irish extremist, domestic extremist and terrorists where a specific ideology has not been identified or their views are not known.

No breakdown of how many terrorists fall into each of these less prevalent categories is provided in the data.

It is said that terrorists will not be subject to the Government’s proposal to release prisoners early from jail to tackle overcrowding and will still have to serve two-thirds of their sentence behind bars and face the Parole Board before walking free.

The figures also show a continued surge in terror arrests in the wake of the ban on supporting Palestine Action.

There were 3,061 arrests for suspected terrorist activity in the year to March, of which 2,819 were linked to supporting the group after it was proscribed in July last year.

Since then, a battle has broken out in the courts between Palestine Action and the Government over the legality of the move.

Members or supporters of the group face up to 14 years in prison under the ban brought in by then-home secretary Yvette Cooper.

The news prompted protests against the decision, and led to arrests of demonstrators holding placards supporting the group.

In February, High Court judges ruled the Government’s proscription of Palestine Action was unlawful after a legal challenge from the group’s co-founder Huda Ammori.

But the Home Office challenged the decision and saw it overturned in the Court of Appeal, after judges found the ban on the organisation as a terror group was a “justified and proportionate” interference on freedom of expression rights.

Earlier this month Ms Ammori made a bid to take her case to the Supreme Court.

The record of terrorists behind bars comes as knife crime in England and Wales has fallen to its lowest level in 35 years, as revealed today by the Office for National Statistics.

A total of 176 knife or sharp object incident homicides were recorded by police forces in 2025/26, down 14 per cent from 204 in the previous 12 month period.

This marks the lowest number since 1990/91, and more than a third lower since the peak of 282 in 2017/18.

Crime and policing minister Sarah Jones said the government was "turning the tide on the crimes that blight communities", and that ministers have "put more than 3,800 additional officers into neighbourhood roles, giving communities the visible policing they have been calling for".