James Bulger’s killer Jon Venables could soon be free again. 

Britain’s Parole Board has confirmed it will consider whether he should be released from jail. 

Venables and Robert Thompson, both 10 at the time, shocked the world in 1993 when they kidnapped two year old Jamie from a Merseyside shopping centre. 

The pair went on to murder him. 

Venables was released on licence in 2001 but has since been jailed a further two times for the possession of indecent child images. 

A previous application for parole was rejected in 2023.

On Newstalk Breakfast, journalist Enda Brady said there are a number of people Venables must convince before he walks free from prison. 

“There will be a final decision and ultimately come down to the governor of the prison he’s in and the Secretary of State for Justice in the UK Government,” he said. 

“The family of Jamie Bulger are livid about this; they’ve given statements to the media and they say he must not under any circumstances be released. 

“So, ultimately, it will be whether or not the authorities believe he still poses a real to children and other.” 

After his release from prison, Venables was given a new identity in order to protect him from vigilante attacks, 

However, public fascination and revulsion towards him has never dissipated. 

“In 2010, he hit the headlines again, he was recalled to prison and that was a huge story here at the time,” Mr Brady explained.  

“Indecent images of children were found on a computer laptop, so that was him back in prison. 

“He was behind bars again until 2013 when he was released and within four years, he was caught again with disgusting images of children. 

“So, he’s been recalled to prison twice.” 

A Parole Board spokesperson said in a statement that all parole reviews are “undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care”.

“Protecting the public is our number one priority,” they said.

Jon Venables. Picture by: Merseyside Police.