// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
Burnham gets the early prison release changes he wanted - but at what cost?
The prime minister's announcement that he will keep hundreds of criminals behind bars who would otherwise have been released early is one he has wanted to make for weeks.
Andy Burnham had already expanded the list of people ineligible for early release and had consistently said he wanted to go further.
What is not clear is exactly what has changed to allow him to do so.
Earlier this month, the Ministry of Justice warned that exempting any more prisoners risked "prisons reaching capacity and collapsing".
The prime minister himself previously said he had "pushed to the very limits of what is possible to do".
In his exclusive interview with BBC Breakfast, Burnham picked out the release of people on controversial indefinite sentences and the deportation of foreign criminals as measures that had made his latest intervention possible.
It is understood extra capacity will also be created by immediately beginning work to create new cells in existing prisons.
Ending indefinite sentences will require new legislation, meaning it could be years before space is freed up.
Previous governments have struggled to quickly deport foreign offenders and there are not thought to be any new returns agreements with other countries.
Retrofitting prisons to create more cells is also expected to take months.