Judicial Response to the publication of the Attorney General's unduly lenient referral statistics

The Deputy Head of Criminal Justice, Lord Justice Thomas, has responded to the release of statistics today by the Attorney General’s office. The figures report the number of cases where the Attorney General asked the Court of Appeal to decide whether a sentence imposed by the Crown Court was unduly lenient.

Lord Justice Thomas said: “The figures published today show that the system for the Court of Appeal to deal with unduly lenient sentences is working. The Attorney General’s power to ask the Court of Appeal to examine sentences which she thinks are unduly lenient is an important part of her independent role in representing the public interest. The Attorney General can look at cases brought to her attention by prosecutors, victims and interested members of the public. In the small number of cases referred to it by the Attorney General, the Court of Appeal decides whether the sentence is unduly lenient. The Court of Appeal also decides many cases where people convicted of criminal offences argue that their sentences are too severe.”

“To put the figures in context, the Crown Court deals with around 80,000 cases in a year. Legal rules set out which of these cases the Attorney General can refer to the Court of Appeal. Last year, 71 cases were brought before the Court. Of these, 52 had their sentence increased.”
It is important when looking at these statistics to recognise the following points:

• All cases are different and must be considered individually according to their specific circumstances.
• Judges have to balance a variety of complex factors alongside legislative provisions, decisions of the Court of Appeal and Sentencing Guidelines. When complex or unprecedented decisions are made, they may be considered by the Court of Appeal so that the appropriate sentencing approach can be set for the future.

Notes to Editors

1. The statistics and cases referred to the Court of Appeal by the Attorney General can obtained by contacting Russell Hayes, Attorney General’s Press Office, 020 7271 2484 or Bernadette Caffarey 020 7271 2440.

2. The Attorney General’s power to refer sentences to the Court of Appeal is set out in sections 35 and 36 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988. The power can only be exercised in relation to “indictable only offences” (serious criminal offences which can only be tried by the Crown Court) or offences which are set out in the Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Review of Sentencing) Order 2006 (including a number of sex offences, child cruelty and threats to kill).

3. If you require any additional information, please contact the Judicial Communications Office on 020 7073 4852.

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