Four days after Hadush Kebatu was mistakenly released from prison in Chelmsford, Justice Secretary David Lammy has made a statement in the House of Commons to address the case - one described by the Conservatives as a "national embarrassment".

Kebatu was only weeks into his 12-month prison sentence when he was released from HMP Chelmsford on Friday morning - when he should instead have been sent to an immigration detention centre, before removal from the UK.

Despite reportedly returning to the prison a number of times, it wasn't until Sunday morning when he was located and rearrested by the Metropolitan Police in London.

Kebatu was convicted of multiple charges last month, including the sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl, in a high-profile case that prompted wider debate, reaction and protests regarding how the government houses asylum seekers.

His release appears to have arisen from "human error", the justice secretary told the Commons, but it comes against a backdrop of yearly increases in releases in error since 2021.

An independent investigation into the incident will now be conducted by Dame Lynne Owens, Lammy announced, alongside changes to release procedure.

Meanwhile, the government has pledged to deport Kebatu back to Ethiopia "as soon as possible" - but for now there's been no further updates as to when that might happen.

We'll be closing our live page shortly - but you can keep up to date with our news story.

Image source, Getty Images

In the Commons earlier, Justice Secretary David Lammy said there would be an "independent investigation" into the accidental release of migrant sex offender Hadush Kebatu.

It will be led by former Deputy Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Dame Lynne Owens.

Owens retired in May this year after over 35 years in policing. She's held several other high profile roles, such as Director General of the National Crime Agency, and was the first female Chief Constable of Surrey Police.

She will produce a report highlighting any points of failure and recommendations to prevent any similar incidents.

Owens will also speak to victims of Kebatu's offending in Epping, Lammy said.

We've been listening to Justice Secretary David Lammy addressing MPs about the mistaken release of convicted sex offender Hadush Kebatu.

Here's what we've heard:

• Kebatu was mistakenly released "due to what appears to have been human error", Lammy said
• An independent investigation into the incident will be carried out by Dame Lynne Owens, he announced
• And there will also be an urgent review from His Majesty’s Prison Probation Service to identify any changes that can be made to the prison release process - with more direct senior accountability to be introduced
• Kebatu meanwhile will be deported back to Ethiopia "as quickly as possible", Lammy said
• Lammy acknowledged increases in mistaken releases, but called them a "symptom" of the system that Labour inherited from the previous Conservative government
• Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick was critical of how the situation has been handled - calling it a "national embarrassment"

We're still listening in to Lammy speaking in the Commons and will bring you any key updates.

Conservative Edward Leigh, who as the longest serving male MP in the chamber is the Father of the House, asks about the use of disused military sites to house asylum seekers.

Leigh says the government has promised not to use the RAF Scampton site for this. Does this still stand?

Lammy says the government is looking "intently" at a number of sites, and he is unable to speak about RAF Scampton specifically because he does not have the list in front of him.

The justice secretary is still taking questions from MPs. We'll bring you any more key lines from the Commons, as well as reaction and analysis to Lammy's statement.

Lib Dem MP Jess Brown-Fuller says Kebatu's recapture "doesn't excuse serious mistakes" that caused his release in the first place. She says it's totally unacceptable that the public were ever put at risk.

She asks what consequences those found at fault will face, including whether they will be sacked and what support was provided to Kebatu’s victims over the weekend.

Lammy says 50% of staff in prisons are effectively new on the job as a result of the system inherited from the previous Tory government.

He adds that about 57,000 prisoners are released each year, many "appropriately", but that it is important to get to the bottom of what happened in Kebatu's case.

The next question comes from Labour MP Andy Slaughter, chair of the Justice Committee.

Too many prisons are still relying on handwritten files and digitising more might bring down the number of releases in error, he says.

In response, Lammy says the reason for this is a lack of WiFi availability in prisons, in part due to concerns about inmates using the technology.

That's why many have a paper-based system, which will "always be subject to some human error", Lammy says.

But he adds it is right to "have a proper look at this".

Lammy now lists instances where prisoners were mistakenly released while the Conservatives were in power - including Rayon Newby in March 2023 - and says there were no independent investigations after these incidents.

Dame Lynne Owens will look into the Kebatu release within eight weeks, he says.

Jenrick should “hang his head in shame,” Lammy says, his voice raised.

He says the crisis in prisons is due to “14 years of failure” under the Conservative government, saying that under the Tories there were 17 mistaken releases a month.

“He has the brass neck to give the impression that this started 14 months ago,” he says, visibly angry.

Jenrick asks if Lammy can give cast-iron assurance that Kebatu will be deported by the end of the week, and "if he fails will he take responsibility and resign".

Jenrick asks the justice secretary if he will "finally acknowledge" a link between small boat crossing and crime in the UK, and if he will call small boats "out for what they are - a national security emergency".

Jenrick says a previous internal audit at HMP Chelmsford rated it as "of serious concern".

He then asks Lammy what he is going to do to make sure issues in prisons are not covered up.

Jenrick adds this accidental release was not a one-off blunder, and the number of prisoners released early has doubled.

Jenrick asks Lammy how many of what he says are the 262 prisoners released mistakenly in the year to March were violent offenders, and how many were migrants awaiting deportation like Kebatu.

Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick starts his response Lammy's statement: "Dear oh dear, where to begin."

He says that Kebatu, after having been mistakenly released, had returned to prison asking to be deported "five times".

"He was turned away," Jenrick says as he calls the situation a "national embarrassment".

Lammy says releases in error are “not simply a fact of life,” and that the government will get to the bottom of Hadush Kebatu's early release.

The government will “take whatever steps necessary to tackle the spike in releases in error".

He then concludes his statement to take questions.

Lammy says the government is undertaking the largest prison expansion since the Victorian era, and "there'll be more people in prison at the end of this parliament than there have ever been before".

He adds that the government has already built 2,500 of the 14,000 additional prison places it has promised to provide. They've also sped up the removals system so that foreign nationals can be deported after serving 30% of their sentence, rather than 50%, says Lammy.

He adds that the government will go "even further" to deport foreign criminals as soon as possible after their sentencing.

Lammy blames the Tories for the issues now facing prisons, saying releases in error are a "symptom" of the system Labour inherited from them.

He pauses for a moment as this claim prompts opposition from the Tory benches.

Lammy continues, outlining cuts to staffing and funding which he says have impacted the service.

He says it is little wonder these issues happen "when the system has been brought to its knees".

Image source, Metropolitan Police

Continuing his statement, Lammy turns now to an independent investigation he says will be carried out by Dame Lynne Owens.

She will produce a report highlighting points of failure and recommendations to prevent any similar incidents, Lammy says.

He adds that releases in error have been increasing year on year since 2021 - saying a "single release in error is one too many".

Lammy says he has asked for an urgent review from His Majesty’s Prison Probation Service to identify any changes that can be made to the release process.

There will be more direct senior accountability, he says, including a checklist for governors.

“These are the strongest release checks that have ever been in place,” Lammy says.

He also says that foreign nationals can only be released under the "early removal scheme" if the duty governor is physically present from now on.

According to the government, the scheme "enables the removal of foreign nationals from prison at an earlier point in their sentence than would otherwise be possible for the sole purpose of removal or deportation from the UK".

Lammy says there is a limit on what he can say but MPs, but that he will update the House when he can.

He adds that when he was first informed of Kebatu's release, he "immediately" spoke to the prison's duty governor and sought assurances about the measures being taken.

He also coordinated the response with the Home Office and police and chaired three operational meetings with police, he says,

He tells the House "we must get to the bottom of this" to prevent something similar happening again.

Lammy says Kebatu's victims are "rightly outraged" and adds that he is "livid on their behalf".

This should not have happened we all expect better from a critical public service, he says.

Lammy then begins summarising the events of the past few days.

On 24 October, Kebatu was scheduled to be transferred to an immigration removal centre for deportation, he says.

"Due to what appears to have been human error", he was instead released, Lammy adds.

Shortly after noon, concerns were raised to the prison's duty governor and staff were then dispatched to find Kebatu, Lammy says.

Essex Police were notified and a manhunt began when it became clear he wasn't in the area, Lammy says.

Lammy sets out that Kebatu was mistakenly released on Friday morning before being apprehended by the Metropolitan Police on Sunday morning in the Finsbury Park area.

He is now "back where he belongs" behind bars, Lammy says, as he thanks both the police forces involved and the public for their help following the appeal.

He adds that Kebatu will be transported for deportation back to Ethiopia "as quickly as possible".

Justice Secretary David Lammy is on his feet to make his statement to the Commons.

We'll have updates throughout, and you can follow along by pressing watch live at the top of the page.