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4 March 2011
Last updated at 23:16 ET
The Magistrates' Association has criticised the justice secretary's plan to increase the use of bail for people awaiting trial in England and Wales.
Ken Clarke wants defendants who are unlikely to receive a jail term to get bail automatically, in a bid to ease prison overcrowding and cut costs.
But magistrates say they need the power to lock up defendants in case they approach witnesses, commit further crimes or fail to appear for hearings.
Legislation could be published in May.
'Humiliating U-turn' Mr Clarke has promised to end the rise in prisoner numbers and "break the cycle" of crime by tackling the causes of reoffending.
His Green Paper on sentencing in England and Wales aims to cut the 85,000 inmate population by 3,000.
But the Magistrates Association says it is "strongly against" the proposal, which it claims could affect 35,000 suspects every year.
Mr Clarke also wants to halve prison terms for offenders who admit their crimes at the earliest opportunity.
But magistrates say the plans - combined with existing measures for release halfway through a sentence - risk undermining public confidence in the justice system.
The government wants to reduce the £4bn prison and probation budget by 20% over four years.
In December when the changes were first mooted shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan said it was a "humiliating U-turn" by the Conservatives and meant pre-election promises to be tough on crime had been abandoned.
"Sentencing policy should be about dealing with offenders in the right way to protect the public but this review has been about trying to reduce the prison population in order to cut costs," he added.
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Ken Clarke wants defendants who are unlikely to receive a jail term to get bail automatically, in a bid to ease prison overcrowding and cut costs.
But magistrates say they need the power to lock up defendants in case they approach witnesses, commit further crimes or fail to appear for hearings.
Legislation could be published in May.
'Humiliating U-turn' Mr Clarke has promised to end the rise in prisoner numbers and "break the cycle" of crime by tackling the causes of reoffending.
His Green Paper on sentencing in England and Wales aims to cut the 85,000 inmate population by 3,000.
But the Magistrates Association says it is "strongly against" the proposal, which it claims could affect 35,000 suspects every year.
Mr Clarke also wants to halve prison terms for offenders who admit their crimes at the earliest opportunity.
But magistrates say the plans - combined with existing measures for release halfway through a sentence - risk undermining public confidence in the justice system.
The government wants to reduce the £4bn prison and probation budget by 20% over four years.
In December when the changes were first mooted shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan said it was a "humiliating U-turn" by the Conservatives and meant pre-election promises to be tough on crime had been abandoned.
"Sentencing policy should be about dealing with offenders in the right way to protect the public but this review has been about trying to reduce the prison population in order to cut costs," he added.
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