HC Deb 30 January 1976 vol 904 c395W
Mr. Grocott

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the average length of sentence imposed by British courts in each of the following years 1960, 1965, 1970, 1975.

Mr. Alexander W. Lyon

The available information, which is reproduced in the following table, relates to the estimated average effective sentence length imposed on offenders received into prison whether sentenced in the Crown Court or a magistrates' court. "Effective sentence" means the gross length of sentence to be served when a prisoner is received under sentence, before account is taken of various factors that may shorten actual time served. Consecutive sentences, including those that follow the breach of a previous court order—such as a suspended sentence order—are aggregated. Information on this basis is not available for 1960, nor, yet, for 1975.

Average effective sentence length (weeks)
1961 36
1965 30
1970 47
1974 55

My hon. Friend will, no doubt, understand the severe limitations in the concept of "average length of sentence" and, more particularly, in any attempt to make comparisons of these figures over time, because of the many other variables.

Forward to