Justice select committee issues warning over proposals to allow offenders reduced sentences in return for prompt guilty pleas
The changes to sentencing could also have an adverse impact on offenders with mental health problems, say MPs. Photograph: Paul Faith/PA
Plans to tighten rules allowing offenders to receive reduced sentences in return for early guilty pleas must be delayed in case they lead to a surge in the prison population, MPs have said.
Up to 4,000 additional places for inmates may be needed if proposals from the Sentencing Council go ahead, according to the justice select committee. The justice secretary, Michael Gove, has also signalled his concern at the revised scheme.
Introducing stricter guidelines designed to persuade defendants to plead guilty earlier in the court process could have a perverse impact and encourage more to go to full trial, the committee’s report suggests.
The changes, currently out to consultation, may also adversely affect those with mental health problems and the increasing number of unrepresented defendants going through the criminal justice system, MPs fear.
Defendants often delay their plea for as long as possible until they can see the strength of the prosecution evidence. Announcing the proposals in February, Lord Justice Treacy, the chairman of the Sentencing Council, said: “We want those who have committed crimes to admit their guilt as early as possible … It also means that the police and Crown Prosecution Service can use their resources more efficiently to investigate and prosecute other cases.”
However, in its report, the justice select committee warns that the well-intentioned aim could cost up to £120m extra in funding additional prison places.
“We recommend that the Sentencing Council delay the finalisation and implementation of the new guideline until it has undertaken and published further research into the factors that influence a defendant’s decision about whether and when to plead guilty, both in the magistrates’ court and the crown court,” the report concludes.
Bob Neill MP, the Conservative chair of the committee, said: “There has not been enough research to assess the possible impact on prisons and other aspects of the criminal justice system. The Sentencing Council should conduct further research into the factors that influence a defendant’s decision to plead guilty, to inform a more comprehensive and robust reassessment of the draft guideline, taking into account costs and savings to all aspects of the criminal justice system, especially the prison population.”
Under the Sentencing Council’s proposals, to qualify for the maximum reduction of one-third off their punishment, offenders would have to acknowledge guilt the first time that they are asked for their plea in court.
For those who plead guilty after the first stage, the maximum reduction for which they are eligible would drop to one-fifth, compared with one-quarter under the current process. A Sentencing Council resource assessment acknowledged the uncertainty as to how defendants would respond to a changed guideline.
“Some defendants, having missed the full one-third discount, may opt to go to trial and, if found guilty, could serve longer prison terms by losing credit for an early plea,” the MPs suggest.
“On this assumption, the resource assessment estimates up to 4,000 additional prison places may be needed. Even if more offenders do plead guilty at the first stage of proceedings, the assessment estimates that 1,000 additional prison places would be required; this is because the new guideline is designed to ensure that sentence reductions are applied more consistently than under the current guideline.”
A significant minority of respondents to the Sentencing Council’s consultation have predicted that, by reducing from 25% to 20% the discount for a later guilty plea, the guideline will give defendants insufficient incentive to plead guilty.
The justice committee report adds: “We are aware that the secretary of state for justice, the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, has written to the chairman of the Sentencing Council requesting that the impact of these initiatives be reviewed before deciding how to proceed with the guideline.
“He has also suggested that the government’s behavioural insights team be given time to test the impact of a proposed new model for providing information about early guilty pleas to defendants at the police station.
“The potentially serious impact of the new guideline on the prison population is a matter of some concern to us; that population now stands at around 84,500 and prisons are widely perceived as being under intense strain.”
A spokesman for the Sentencing Council said: “[We are] grateful for the justice select committee’s careful consideration of our proposals. Over the next few months we will be looking at the committee’s recommendations alongside the views received in nearly 180 responses to our consultation. All responses receive detailed consideration and we frequently make changes to our drafts as a result of the insights we receive from respondents.”
