Sentencing Council Annual Report 2019/20
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Sentencing Council Annual Report 2019/20 Sentencing Council Annual Report 2019/20 The Sentencing Council is an independent, non-departmental public body of the Ministry of Justice This report is presented to Parliament pursuant to Section 119(2) of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 © Crown copyright 2020 This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ version/3. Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. This publication is available at www.gov.uk/official-documents. Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to us at [email protected] ISBN 978-1-5286-1961-5 CCS0520648554 07/20 Printed on paper containing 75% recycled fibre content minimum Printed in the UK by the APS Group on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office Sentencing Council Contents Foreword 1 Introduction 7 Key events of 2019/20 8 Sentencing guidelines 10 Arson and criminal damage 10 Assault and attempted murder 11 Bladed articles and offensive weapons 12 Breach offences 13 Children and young people 13 Drug offences 13 Firearms offences 14 General guideline and expanded explanations 16 Guilty plea 16 Health and safety offences, corporate manslaughter and food safety and hygiene offences 18 Intimidatory offences 18 Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Guidelines (MCSG) and associated explanatory materials 18 Mental disorders, developmental disorders or neurological impairments 21 Public order offences 22 Terrorism offences 23 Communication 25 Analysis and research 30 Sentencing factors report 32 Sentencing guidelines 32 Arson and criminal damage 32 General guideline and expanded explanations 33 Public order offences 35 Non-sentencing factors report 38 Definition of non-sentencing factors and their significance 38 Statistics on the effect of non-sentencing factors on resource requirements 38 Volume of sentences and composition of offences coming before the courts 40 Annual Report 2019/20 The rate of recall from licence 40 Post-sentence supervision 40 The rate at which court orders are breached 40 Patterns of reoffending 41 Release decisions by the Parole Board 41 Remand 41 Budget 42 Financial report 42 Appendices 43 Appendix A: About the Sentencing Council 43 Appendix B: Membership of the Sentencing Council 48 Appendix C: Sentencing guidelines production stages 49 vi Sentencing Council Foreword by the Chairman I am pleased Sentencing guidelines to introduce the Sentencing In the year between April 2019 and March Council’s annual 2020, the Council published three definitive report for guidelines: Arson and Criminal Damage on 2019/20. It is the 3 July 2019, the General Guideline on 24 July Council’s tenth 2019 and Public Order on 16 October 2019. annual report and The Arson and Criminal Damage guidelines my second as came into force on 1 October 2019. The Chairman, and it guidelines acknowledge that the harm marks the year in caused by these offences can involve not only which the Council completes its first decade. physical injury but long-term psychological The primary duty of the Sentencing Council effects, and that damage to property can is to provide judges and magistrates with be about more than just its financial value. guidelines that promote a clear, fair and The guidelines provide a framework to help consistent approach to sentencing, while the courts take account of the full impact of maintaining the independence of the such offences whether that be the economic judiciary. During this last year we have or social impact of damage caused to public continued to meet this duty, bringing us ever amenities and services, the loss to the nation closer to the goals we set ourselves for 2020: caused by acts such as vandalism to our to have updated all the guidelines produced heritage assets or the effect on communities by our predecessor body the Sentencing when emergency services or other resources Guidelines Council (SGC) and to have issued are diverted to deal with incidents of criminal new guidelines for the most-frequently activity. sentenced offences. The General Guideline also came into force During the period covered by this report – 1 on 1 October 2019. The Council produced April 2019 to 31 March 2020 – the Council this guideline for the courts to use when was, as ever, committed to ensuring that sentencing offences for which there is no the equality and diversity implications of existing offence-specific guideline. It applies its work were fully explored and addressed. to adult offenders and organisations, and One such example is our investigation of the has been developed to provide guidance association between an offender’s sex and for sentencing a wide range of offences with ethnicity and the sentences imposed in the very different characteristics and maximum Crown Court for supply-related drugs offences sentences. It is of particular value for (see pp13-14). There is now an increased sentencing those offences in magistrates’ focus on such matters, including issues courts for which there are no relevant relating to race and criminal justice, and in judgments from the Court of Appeal, and for the year ahead we will continue to consider sentencing in cases involving types of offence how the Council should respond. that do not often come before the courts. 1 Annual Report 2019/20 Also coming into force on 1 October were the offences, no guidelines for riot or stirring the Expanded Explanations that the Council up racial hatred and only limited guidance developed to supplement the General in the Magistrates’ Courts Sentencing Guideline. The Expanded Explanations are Guidelines for sentencing violent disorder, embedded within the General Guideline and all affray, threatening behaviour, disorderly existing offence-specific guidelines to provide behaviour with intent to harassment, alarm or useful additional information in relation to distress and disorderly behaviour causing or aggravating and mitigating factors. In some likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress. cases, the explanations reflect case law or provide links to or extracts from existing The new guidelines consider the wide overarching guidelines, in others they help range of harm that may be present in clarify the Council’s intentions in identifying these offences, from physical damage specific factors. The explanations enable all to infrastructure and communities to the those involved in sentencing to be aware of physical and psychological harm that may be the relevant considerations and ensure the caused to individual victims. factors are applied consistently. They also Consultation do much to add to the transparency of the sentencing guidelines for non-specialist users. Consultation continues to be an essential part of our approach to developing guidelines. We The Expanded Explanations take full are grateful to all those whose contributions advantage of the Council’s move to help inform our approach, be they members digital guidelines. All offence-specific and of the judiciary, our colleagues in the criminal overarching guidelines are now available justice system, others with an interest in to sentencers and other practitioners on criminal justice, individuals and organisations the Council’s website and in an iPad app with expertise in our topic areas or members specifically designed for magistrates. Were it of the public. not for the earlier move to digital, we would not have been able to realise the full value of During the year of this report, the Council the Expanded Explanations. ran four consultations for offence-specific guidelines. These consultations sought views The Public Order guidelines, which came into on new draft guidelines for firearms offences, effect on 1 January 2020, have provided a revised guidelines for terrorism offices, comprehensive package of guidelines to be revised and new guidelines for drug offences used by all courts in England and Wales when and, together, for driving disqualification sentencing offenders convicted of offences offences, breaches of community orders and ranging from low-level disorderly behaviour totality. to widespread public disorder. Prior to their publication, guidance for sentencing these We also consulted in spring 2019 on offences had been very limited. There were a proposed overarching guideline for no guidelines in the Crown Court for any of sentencing offenders with mental disorders. 2 Sentencing Council This important guideline will, when it comes 6 April 2010 and, over the last decade, has into force in 2020, provide the courts with a successfully provided judges and magistrates clear structure and process to follow when with an extensive body of sentencing sentencing people with mental disorders, guidelines. We have largely achieved our goals developmental disorders or neurological to replace the SGC guidelines and publish new impairments, including those with learning guidelines for the most-frequently sentenced disabilities, autism, brain injury, substance offences. But the Council does more than misuse disorders and dementia. We produce guidelines: we publish research developed the proposed guideline with and statistics on sentencing to improve assistance from experts within the medical understanding of the operation and effect profession, academics and charities of the sentencing guidelines; we undertake representing people with mental disorders,