§ Mr. BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria he uses(a) when deciding whether to make a recommendation of minimum sentence and (b) when making that recommendation.
§ Mr. JackIt is assumed that by "recommendation of minimum sentence", the hon. Member refers to the part played by the Secretary of State in the administration of the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment. This is the only occasion on which the Secretary of State would be involved in considering the minimum period that should be served in custody; in such cases, it is his responsibility to determine, after taking into account the views of the trial judge and the Lord Chief Justice, the minimum period necessary to satisfy the requirements of retribution and deterrence. This period is known as the "tariff".