LONDON: Britain’s disgraced former energy minister Chris Huhne and his ex-wife were both freed from prison yesterday after serving a quarter of their eight-month sentences for swapping speeding points.
Huhne, 58, and his former spouse Vicky Pryce had been jailed in March for perverting the course of justice, after she took penalty points on her driving licence in 2003 so that her then husband could avoid a driving ban.
Pryce, a Greek-born 60-year-old economist, revealed the points swap in 2011 in a bid to get revenge at Huhne after he left her for his publicist — but the plan backfired and resulted in her being jailed herself after being found guilty in a retrial.
The former power couple — who will have to wear electronic tags as a condition of their early release — were pursued by packs of press photographers as they left their respective prisons yesterday. Speaking to reporters outside his London home, Huhne said he was “very sorry” for what he did.
“It has been a humbling and sobering experience,” he said. “I would now like to get on, get back to home, and continue with my life.” Huhne, who once ran for the leadership of the Liberal Democrats, junior partners in Britain’s coalition government, and senior economist Pryce served their sentences in low-security jails.
AFP
