Up to 43,000 criminals a year are set to dodge jail sentences and walk free from court with a ‘slap on the wrist’ under Labour’s soft-justice masterplan.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s measures will also see rapists and killers let out of jail years earlier, Ministry of Justice figures indicate.
The sentencing review was published yesterday and its recommendations have been accepted ‘in principle’ by Ms Mahmood.
Under the plan courts will no longer impose jail terms of less than 12 months, apart from in ‘exceptional circumstances’ such as when an offender fails to comply with a court order.
Ministry of Justice (MoJ) figures show that of 79,812 criminals handed an immediate custodial sentence last year, 43,322 received a sentence of less than 12 months, excluding those sentenced for breach of a court order.
