Sexual Offences: Sentencing
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that sentences for rape and serious sexual offences committed by offenders under the age of 18 reflect the seriousness of those crimes and command public confidence.
Answered by Jake Richards
Rape and serious sexual offences should always be met with a strong response from the criminal justice system, one which reflects the seriousness of the harm caused to victims and the need to protect the public.
Individual sentencing decisions are for the independent judiciary. Judges apply the law and sentencing guidelines to the specific facts of the case. They consider factors like the seriousness of the offence, the harm caused, and the circumstances of the offenders.
The Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme exists to ensure that the public have a route to ask the Attorney General to review a sentence. The Attorney General can, if they believe the sentence to be unduly lenient, refer the case to the Court of Appeal, who may increase the sentence.
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