Government urged to empower police with more force to bring offenders to court

Government urged to empower police with more force to bring offenders to court

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said guilty defendants avoiding court was a ‘final insult to victims and their families’.

More community sentences in England and Wales could be ‘catastrophic’, warns watchdog - Finnoexpert

Plans to allow thousands more criminals in England and Wales to serve their sentence in the community risk “catastrophic consequences” unless the Probation Service is overhauled, a watchdog has told the Guardian. Martin Jones, HM chief inspector of probation, said government plans to hand responsibility for overseeing offenders from prisons to probation officers meant the risk “is carried directly into the community”. He called for extra funds, …

Mahmood warns of stark choices for prison reform to ensure ‘worthy’ system - Jersey Evening Post

The Justice Secretary warned of having to make “stark choices” in relation to prison reform to ensure a criminal justice system “worthy of the name”, it has been reported. Plans for long-term reform are expected to be introduced following the independent sentencing review, which is due to be published on Thursday – which could include a scheme through which private companies employ offenders but reduce their wages and give the money to victims, …