Policy paper

Criminal Justice Bill (MoJ): Sentencing measures

Updated 23 February 2024

This was published under the 2022 to 2024 Sunak Conservative government

What are we going to do?

Grooming behaviour (including gangs)

We are introducing legislation to require the courts to consider grooming when sentencing for specified sexual offences committed against those under 18, going further than existing sentencing guidelines. This will include (but is not limited to) individuals involved in grooming gangs.

Murder: end of a relationship

We are introducing legislation to recognise the seriousness of murder which is connected to the end of a relationship, or the victim’s intention to end a relationship, in the sentencing framework for murder.

Attendance at sentencing hearing

We are introducing legislative measures giving judges powers to order offenders to attend their sentencing hearings. Those who refuse, without reasonable excuse, will face an additional custodial sentence of up to 24 months.

We are also making it clear – in law – that reasonable force can be used to make sure offenders attend their sentencing hearings where necessary and proportionate.

How are we going to do it?

For further information on these measures, please consult the published explanatory notes.

Grooming behaviour (including gangs)

We are introducing a new statutory aggravating factor for grooming. This will capture offenders whose offending is facilitated by, or involved, the grooming of a person under 18. The grooming itself need not be sexual. The grooming may be undertaken by the offender or a third party and committed against the victim of the underlying offence or a third-party. An aggravating factor makes an offence more serious and must be considered by the court when deciding the length of the sentence.

We are also specifying that there is nothing preventing the courts from applying the factor to other relevant offences or age groups.

Murder: end of a relationship

We are creating a new statutory aggravating factor for murders which are connected to the end of a relationship, or the victim’s intention to end a relationship. Killing in this context is the final controlling act of an abusive partner, and the seriousness of this will now be recognised in law.

Statutory aggravating factors for murder must be considered when determining the minimum term (tariff) of the mandatory life sentence for murder. This is the minimum amount of time which the offender must spend in prison before the Parole Board consider, for the first time, whether the offender can safely be released to serve the rest of their life sentence on licence in the community.

This measure implements the final legislative change which the government committed to in response to the independent Domestic Homicide Sentencing Review undertaken by Clare Wade KC.

Attendance at sentencing hearing

We are creating a new statutory power for the Crown Court to order an offender to attend their sentencing hearing. Where an adult offender refuses to attend without a reasonable excuse, they will commit a contempt of court and will face a further custodial sentence of up to 24 months, in addition to their sentence for the original offence. Where a child refuses to attend they will be subject to sanctions in line with the contempt of court penalties for children. The maximum sanction is a fine of £2,500.

The measure will apply to all offenders convicted of an offence which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Alongside this we are creating an express power in legislation for judges to require production of adult offenders in the Crown Court for sentencing hearings. And we will make it clear in legislation that force can be used in appropriate circumstances through an express power for prison and prisoner escort and custody service (PECS) staff to use reasonable force, if necessary and proportionate.

Frequently asked questions

Grooming behaviour (including gangs)

What is the impact likely to be on sentences for offences that involve grooming behaviour?

This new statutory aggravating factor will require the courts to consider grooming behaviour when sentencing for specified sexual offences committed against those under 18. It goes further than existing Sentencing Guidelines by creating an obligation to aggravate sentences where an offence has been facilitated by grooming undertaken by others, with the offender themselves not directly involved in grooming. It also applies to a wider spectrum of offences, for example rape and sexual assault of children over 13.

Which offenders does this factor apply to?

Primarily, this factor will apply to offenders who have committed a specified sexual offence against a victim under 18. This includes rape, sexual assault and other child sex offences.

The factor will also specify that there is nothing preventing the courts from applying it to offenders who have committed other offences where appropriate.

What types of grooming will this aggravating factor apply to?

The aggravating factor will apply to grooming conducted with a view to committing a specified sexual offence, but the grooming conduct itself need not be sexual in nature.

Why are grooming gangs being targeted over other forms of child sexual abuse?

All forms of child sexual abuse are abhorrent crimes. The government is committed to prevention and punishment of those who seek to sexually exploit or abuse children.

This aggravating factor has a broad application and can be applied wherever an offender has been convicted of child sexual abuse or exploitation, involving grooming. This can either be by a group or a single offender.

However, whereas the courts can already aggravate for grooming behaviour by the offender, this aggravating factor will also create a specific statutory obligation to aggravate sentences where a sexual offence against a child or young person has been facilitated by grooming undertaken by others. The offence will be aggravated both where the offence is facilitated by the grooming of the victim and where the offence is facilitated by the grooming of any other person aged under 18.

Murder: end of a relationship

What difference will this measure make to sentence lengths?

This change, along with the other changes we are making in response to the independent Domestic Homicide Sentencing Review, mark a step change in the way our sentencing framework responds to cases of domestic murder. For the first time, the seriousness of domestic murders and the particular harms that arise in these cases will be given specialist consideration in the framework. The perpetrators in these cases must, and will, serve sentences that truly reflect the severity of these crimes.

While it is for the judge to determine the appropriate weight to be given to the aggravating factors in each case, we expect that together, these changes will have a significant impact on the minimum custodial terms given to the perpetrators in these cases.

How often are murders connected with the end of a relationship?

40% of murder cases analysed for the Domestic Homicide Sentencing Review were at the end, or perceived end, of a relationship and in the majority of these cases, this appeared to be the catalyst for the killing. In all of these cases, the perpetrator was male, and in over two-thirds of them, a history of behaviour which was coercive or controlling was also identified.

What other changes is the government making to in response to the independent Domestic Homicide Sentencing Review undertaken by Clare Wade KC?

The Lord Chancellor laid a statutory instrument on 23 October seeking to amend Schedule 21 to the Sentencing Act 2020 by adding two statutory aggravating factors for murder and one statutory mitigating factor for murder. The new statutory aggravating factors are (a) the fact that the offender had repeatedly or continuously engaged in behaviour towards the victim that was controlling or coercive and (b) the use of sustained and excessive violence towards the victim, intended to capture cases of ‘overkill’. The new statutory mitigating factor is the fact that the victim had repeatedly or continuously engaged in behaviour towards the offender that was controlling or coercive.

Additionally, we have invited the Law Commission to undertake a review of the use of defences to murder in cases involving domestic abuse. - Beyond the Review’s recommendations, later this year we will launch a public consultation. This will seek views on a minimum term starting point for murders preceded by controlling or coercive behaviour against the victim, and for all murders committed with a knife or other weapon.

Attendance at sentencing hearing

Why are you not extending the power to order the offender to attend to other offences?

We want to capture the offenders who have done the most serious harm to their victims, to ensure that they face up to their crimes and hear how they have impacted the victims and their families. - The power to order attendance and punish non-attendance will apply to offenders convicted of an offence punishable with a life sentence. This means the measure will capture offences such as murder, manslaughter, rape and robbery.

Will the threat of two years be enough to force offenders facing life in prison to attend?

These reforms will send a clear signal to offenders that their actions have consequences, and that any final insult to their victims or families will be punished.

How effective will this measure be? This cannot guarantee that an offender will come to court and the victims wishes will be met.

We recognise that these measures will not ensure that all offenders will come to court. The new attendance order power will, however, ensure that those convicted of the most serious offences are punished for refusing to attend.

It will reinforce the expectation that offenders should attend their sentencing hearing, not least to ensure that justice is seen to be done by victims and the wider public.

It is also important in recognising the impact that non-attendance has on victims and their families in compounding their trauma.

How is it going to work in practice, will defendants be dragged into the courtroom kicking and screaming?

Prison officers and Prisoner Escort and Custody Service (PECS) staff are trained to move reluctant/resistant offenders around the prison and court estate using approved techniques.

The prison authority will carry out a risk assessment and will determine whether force is necessary, reasonable and proportionate to use in the circumstances.

Judges will have the discretion to decide on the facts of the case whether ordering the defendant to attend is appropriate, because if there are individuals who are seeking to be disruptive, the court can take those matters into account.

Will the measures apply to children?

The measure ordering offenders to attend their sentencing hearings will apply to all offenders convicted of an offence which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. However, the measure providing for the potential use of force will not apply to children, as to do so would be at odds with current policy on using force on children, itself informed by the UK commitments to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

What protections are there for victims if defendants become violent and / or inflict further trauma on victims?

Our reforms crucially retain the discretion of judges who will have the powers they need to ensure they can do the right thing based on the facts of the case in front of them.

There will of course be instances, where it is not in the best interest of the victims or their families for the defendant to be in court.

Will the views of victims be taken into consideration when ordering an offender to attend the sentencing hearing?

It will be up to the courts to decide whether to order the attendance of an offender.

We anticipate that judges will, in making their decision as to whether to order attendance, consider the views of victims or their families, some of whom may in fact not wish to face the offender again.

Do you plan to beam the sentencing remarks and VPS into offenders’ cells if they refuse to come?

Offenders can already be given a physical copy of judges’ sentencing remarks and attend their sentencing hearing by video link, although that may not prevent them from being disruptive. We are considering whether other measures are necessary or appropriate to ensure the impact on victims and judges remarks are felt.