Conservative leadership hopeful Boris Johnson is backing tougher sentences for sex offenders

Boris Johnson has suggested that violent or sexual offenders could remain behind bars for longer, should he win the race to be prime minister.

The former foreign secretary has also said immigrants to the UK must learn English because “there are too many parts of the country where it is not the first language” – and that he was considering an “amnesty” for tens of thousands of people who came to Britain illegally but have been here for more than 15 years.

Mr Johnson made a series of campaign pledges ahead of a busy Saturday for him and rival Jeremy Hunt, who will both appear at the Young Conservatives conference in Nottingham and at two more hustings.

Mr Johnson said it is was wrong that prisoners were being routinely released after serving just half of their sentence.

Talking about his views on the justice system, Mr Johnson told the Daily Mail: “I’m afraid there are too many people, because of the way the sentencing law works, who have committed serious violence or sexual offences who are being let out, as the law prescribes, after they’ve served only half the sentence that is pronounced in open court.

“This is happening. And I’m talking about serious sexual or violent offenders. And I think the public is noticing this, quite properly. They don’t think it’s right, and I don’t think it’s right.”

He added that Theresa May was wrong to introduce curbs on the police’s stop-and-search powers, and indicated he wanted to “change that balance back”.

His demand that people moving to the UK from abroad learn English came during a hustings in Darlington on Friday, where he told party members he wanted immigrants “to be and feel British”.

The former mayor of London has also promised an extra £25m a year in subsidies to Scottish farmers, as part of his leadership campaign, saying he wanted to address the way that they had been “poorly treated”.

Under Mr Johnson’s plans, he said that Scottish farmers would get the same per-hectare farming payment as the UK average post-Brexit.

Meanwhile, Mr Hunt has called on the party’s membership to choose what he calls “serious leadership”.

Mr Hunt says he wants to win over the public through “competence, delivery and serious leadership” rather than “populism”, in an effort to win over younger voters.

At another event today, Mr Hunt is expected to say: “The country always calls on Conservatives when we face difficult challenges.

“But lasting popularity for our party doesn’t come from populism but from respect. Respect earned through competence, delivery and serious leadership.

“Without that respect we will put our country in the hands of a hard-left populist who has opposed British values his entire life.

“We are in a time of real and present danger to our country.”

Despite their rivalry, Mr Johnson and Mr Hunt have both ruled out a second Scottish independence referendum.

They made the commitment in Perth on Friday.

(c) Sky News 2019: Conservative leadership hopeful Boris Johnson is backing tougher sentences for sex offenders