'Minimum number' of prisoners will get the vote

Downing Street has insisted the "minimum number" of prisoners will be given the vote, amid signs of a government U-turn.

Speculation had been growing that ministers were preparing to back down over plans to give the vote to all inmates serving less than four years after a back-bench revolt in the Commons. The cut-off point could be reduced to sentences of 12 months or less.

David Cameron has previously said the idea of giving prisoners the vote makes him "physically ill", but the European Court of Human Rights found the 140-year-old blanket ban unlawful.

Failure to comply could cost tens of millions of pounds in costs and compensation, ministers warned. Some 2,500 inmates already have cases in motion.

But the prospect of granting the vote to more than 28,000 prisoners sparked fury on Tory back-benches when the four-year cut-off was floated last month. Angry MPs will have a chance to revolt against the proposal in a Commons vote in a few weeks' time.

The Prime Minister's spokesman said: "Our intention is to ensure the minimum number of prisoners get the vote."