Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-05-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will commission an independent review into the sentencing regime for imprisonment for public protection which will involve those criminal justice agencies that manage the sentence and incorporate the experiences of prisoners and their families.
Andrew Selous
The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders 2012, abolished the sentence of imprisonment for public protection (IPP) and introduced a new sentencing scheme for dangerous offenders.
In respect of IPP sentences already imposed, the government considered that it would not be right or appropriate retrospectively to alter sentences that had been lawfully imposed, particularly because in this case those sentences were imposed with public protection issues in mind.
Significant numbers of IPP prisoners continue to be released where the Parole Board is satisfied that they can be safely managed in the community, but other prisoners currently remain too high risk to be released. It is a priority for us to help remaining IPP prisoners progress towards release, by ensuring that their parole reviews take place on time, through greater efficiency in the parole process, and by giving their opportunity to complete relevant interventions and work in order to demonstrate reduced risk to the Parole Board.
