HC Deb 27 February 1995 vol 255 cc687-8
32. Mr. Spring

To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on trends on appeals against lenient sentencing.

The Solicitor-General

As the Attorney-General's power of review has become more widely recognised, the number of sentences that he has been asked to consider has increased.

Mr. Spring

Will my hon. and learned Friend confirm that the power to refer unduly lenient sentences to the Court of Appeal has begun to impact on sentences in the first instance? As that matches the public mood, it is greatly to be welcomed.

The Solicitor-General

I can indeed confirm that. In the past 12 months or so we have referred about 12 cases arising out of deaths on the road. The Lord Chief Justice has taken the opportunity in those cases not only to increase the sentence but to update the guidelines in Boswell to take account of the decision taken in the House to increase the maximum sentence from five years to 10 years. As a result of these decisions, general sentencing for causing death on the road has increased nationwide.