Father Faces Return to Prison Under Indefinite IPP Sentence After 14 Years
The family of a prisoner who set himself alight in desperation is pleading with officials to halt plans to return him to jail under a controversial indefinite sentence. Thomas White, 43, was handed an Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) term in 2012 for stealing a mobile phone, with a judge setting a minimum of two years, but he has now served almost 14 years without a release date.
Mental Health Crisis and Hospital Transfer
White was moved to a medium secure hospital unit last year after his family campaigned for his transfer, witnessing his descent into psychosis while incarcerated indefinitely. Doctors have diagnosed him with learning difficulties, complex trauma, ADHD, a personality disorder, and drug-induced psychosis. However, after just six months of hospital care, clinicians informed him last week that he would be sent back to prison within four weeks, still without a release date.
His sister, Pastor Clara White, fears he will deteriorate rapidly back in prison, describing the IPP sentence as "psychological torture." She told The Independent that officials are sending him back to be "tortured some more" after a brief respite in hospital. The move has been delayed following family complaints, but authorities insist he will return to custody.
Campaign for Justice and Political Backing
Pastor White is urging Justice Secretary David Lammy to intervene and prevent the transfer, calling on him to "do the right thing." Her appeals have gained support from Labour peer Lord Tony Woodley, who accused ministers of "heaping cruelty on top of injustice," and former deputy High Court judge Nicholas Cooke KC, who labelled the situation "shamefully cruel."
White is one of approximately 233 IPP prisoners transferred to secure units, often due to severe mental health deterioration from the hopeless nature of their sentences. Yet, once stabilised, they are typically returned to prison without a release date, perpetuating a cycle of distress.
Broader IPP Sentence Controversy
IPP sentences were abolished in 2012 but not applied retrospectively, leaving thousands, like White, trapped indefinitely. As of December last year, nearly 2,400 inmates remained on these terms, with at least 94 having died by suicide in prison after losing hope of release.
Medical reports from 2024 highlighted how White's "lengthy incarceration" created "impermeable barriers" to his recovery. His mother, Margaret White, expressed despair, noting this would be his 14th transfer in as many years, and she cannot bear to watch him "disappear" again.
Legal and International Scrutiny
White's case is among eight IPP injustices raised in a legal complaint to the UN's special rapporteur on torture, Dr Alice Gill Edwards. A separate complaint over five other IPP prisoners is already under investigation by the UN's working group on arbitrary detention. Any finding of degrading treatment or arbitrary detention would severely criticise the government's handling of the scandal.
Lord Woodley has repeatedly called for all IPP prisoners to be resentenced, urging the Ministry of Justice to "show some humanity." Cooke KC argued there is an "overwhelming moral and humanitarian case" for over-tariff IPP prisoners with mental illness to be treated by doctors, not the prison system, to avoid "shamefully cruel" relapses.
Government Response and Ongoing Struggle
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson stated that protecting the public is the top priority, and decisions about hospital discharge are clinical matters based on medical evidence. They noted that all IPP prisoners treated under the Mental Health Act receive aftercare to reduce the risk of mental health deterioration.
However, Pastor White remains resolute, vowing to continue fighting for her brother's hospital care, emphasising the "hopelessness" and pain of his situation. As White told his sister, "They are never going to let me go," underscoring the enduring trauma of indefinite imprisonment.
