Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill

moved Amendment No. 45: 45: After Clause 9, insert the following new Clause— ““Restrictions on custodial sentences for offenders aged under 18 (1) This section applies where a person under the age of 18 is convicted of an offence punishable with a custodial sentence other than one— (a) fixed by law; or (b) falling to be imposed under section 51A(2) of the Firearms Act 1968 (c. 27) (minimum sentence for certain offences under s. 5) or under sections 226 to 228 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44). (2) The Criminal Justice Act 2003 is amended as follows. (3) In the title of section 152 (general restrictions on imposing discretionary custodial sentences), after ““general restrictions on imposing discretionary sentences”” insert ““on offenders aged 18 or above””. (4) In section 152(1), after ““where a person”” insert ““aged 18 or above””. (5) After section 152 insert— ““152A Restrictions on custodial sentences for offenders aged under 18 (1) A court shall only pass a sentence of custody on a person under the age of 18 as a measure of last resort and where— (a) the offence committed caused or could reasonably have been expected to cause serious physical or psychological harm to another or others; and (b) a custodial sentence is necessary to protect the public from a demonstrable and imminent risk of serious physical or psychological harm. (2) The court shall state in open session its reasons for passing any sentence of custody under this section.”””” The noble Baroness said: My Lords, we have arrived, by way of this amendment, at building safeguards yet again as pertains to custody for children. Noble Lords will be forgiven if they felt a sense of déjà vu or familiarity in many of the arguments as they related to Amendment No. 44. Amendment No. 45 would create a statutory custody threshold that must be met before any child is sentenced to custody to ensure that children are locked up only as a last resort and for reasons of public protection, save where mandatory custodial sentences apply. We acknowledge the Minister’s concerns about children who have committed grave crimes and would support a custody threshold that relates only to offences other than murder and the serious crimes listed in Sections 226 and 228 of the Criminal Justice Act. A distinct custody threshold for children and young people was introduced by Parliament more than 25 years ago. It resulted in a 54 per cent decrease over nearly a decade in the number of under-21s given a custodial sentence for indictable offences. In the year ending March 2007, the Youth Justice Board spent £280 million on custody for children, notwithstanding the cost of support in the community for these children and their families. The board now has a target, approved by the Home Office, to reduce the number of children in custody by 10 per cent by 2008. Yet the number of children in custody has risen, not fallen. The amendment is therefore in complete conformity with the stated aim. I was interested to hear the Minister’s numbers for children being received into prison in the debate we have just had. He went slightly too fast for me, so I wonder if the numbers I have match with what he said. Nevertheless, let me repeat them. The number of children aged between 15 and 17 being received into prisons under an immediate custodial sentence has increased from 4,918 in 2003 to 5,219 in 2006, an increase of 13 per cent. This does not take into account receptions into secure training centres and local authority secure children’s homes. Contrary to what the Minister said earlier, there has been a reduction of 22 per cent for all prison receptions, adults and children, raising concerns that children are disproportionately being given immediate custodial sentences. The Minister has argued that a custody threshold already exists in the form of Section 152(2) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. We would argue that it is inadequate because it does not meet our obligations in international human rights law, again something that has been much talked about today. The obligation is that children be treated in a recognisably different way from adults. Custody for children should be used only as a last resort, but we would go further and say that the wording of Section 152(2), which emphasises the seriousness of the offence as the factor to be considered, is meaningless without reference to a person’s age. That is the object of our amendment. The Minister might also argue that that these safeguards would put the public at significant risk, but Ministry of Justice figures up to December 2007 show that the vast majority of children aged between 15 and 17, some 78 per cent, who were sentenced to imprisonment in 2006 were not convicted of offences related to sexual crimes or violence against the person. More than one in 10 children—14 per cent—were imprisoned for theft and handling; 5 per cent for motoring offences and 4 per cent for drug offences. A quarter of children were imprisoned for other offences that included affray, criminal damage and even drunkenness. Then there are well known cases such as the Deerbolt Two where custodial sentences were passed on children for graffiti offences. We know that custody does not rehabilitate the vast majority of children, and much has already been said about that. Three-quarters of these children reoffend within a year. This amendment would enable interventions to kick in earlier for those who do not pose a risk and provide better resources for those who have to enter custody for reasons of public protection. Finally, the Children’s Plan, published in December 2007, promises that the Government are taking, "““a fundamental look at the way in which the criminal justice system overall is working for young people to ensure that we learn from existing good practice and address current concerns. This includes examining what we know about why young people offend, what a more effective approach to prevention would look like, [and] the options available for dealing with children who commit crimes””." So there clearly is an intention on the part of the Government to take a comprehensive look at this area in the round. This amendment would provide them with the means of meeting some of those objectives. Organisations working with children in the criminal justice system and those concerned with the protection of human rights are united in urging a considerable reduction in the number of children held in custody. The general public want more effective intervention and less imprisonment. The Local Government Association has agreed that it is time we, "““explored more effective and sustainable ways of dealing with children in trouble, rather than resorting to””" locking them up. This amendment provides the Government with a way to do that. I beg to move.