A
BILL
TO
Make provision requiring certain prisoners due to be considered for early
release to complete a relevant offender management programme, where
available; to require courts to take regard of mental health problems in
sentencing; to make provision regarding minimum and maximum sentences;
and for connected purposes.
Be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and
consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present
Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
1 Maximum and minimum sentences
(1)
When sentencing a person to serve a sentence of imprisonment for a
determinate term the court shall state the maximum time that shall be served
in prison (“the maximum sentence”).
(2)
5When sentencing a person to serve a sentence of imprisonment for a
determinate term the court shall state the minimum time that shall be served
in prison (“the minimum sentence”).
(3)
The minimum sentence must be less than half, but no less than one-third, of the
maximum sentence.
(4)
10In determining the maximum and minimum sentence the court shall have
regard to the seriousness of the offence.
(5)
When sentencing a person to serve a sentence of imprisonment for a
determinate term the court may request a pre-sentence report from a suitably
qualified employee of the relevant Probation Trust.
(6)
15In this Act “a sentence of imprisonment for a determinate term” means the
types of sentence listed under section 237(1)(a) and (b) of the Criminal Justice
Act 2003.
2 Consideration of mental health problems
In determining whether or not to impose a sentence of imprisonment a court
20must have regard, in addition to the seriousness of the offence, to any mental
Criminal Justice (Amendment) BillPage 2
health problems displayed by the offender as identified by psychological or
psychiatric assessments that are carried out following the commission of the
offence as well as any subsequent psychological or psychiatric assessments
and the likelihood of the person being involved in further similar serious
5offending.
3 Amendments to the Criminal Justice Act 2003
(1) The Criminal Justice Act 2003 is amended as follows.
(2) In section 244(2) at end insert “and subsections (4) to (8)”.
(3) After section 244(3) insert—
“(4)
10Before granting release on licence under this section to a person serving
a sentence of imprisonment of four years or more the relevant Parole
Board must take into consideration whether the offender has
undergone a relevant offender management programme as part of its
determination of whether that individual is considered low risk of
15harm to the public and low risk of reoffending.”.
(4) After section 244(4) insert—
“(5)
A person subject to imprisonment for public protection purposes shall
have the sentence reviewed by the relevant Parole Board at least every
two years.
(6)
20It shall be the responsibility of the Secretary of State to ensure that all
persons subject to imprisonment for public protection purposes shall
have access to relevant offender management programmes for the
duration of their imprisonment.
(7)
In determining whether to recommend an individual sentenced to
25imprisonment for public protection purposes for release on licence the
relevant Parole Board shall have regard to the availability and
completion of relevant offender management programmes, but must
not make such release conditional on the person participating in
offender management programmes if it is satisfied that those
30programmes are not available.
(8)
In this section “imprisonment for public protection” is as defined in
section 225(4) of this Act.”.
4 Short title, commencement and extent
(1) This Act may be cited as the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2011.
(2) 35This Act comes into force on the day on which it is passed.
(3) This Act extends to England and Wales only.