UK to apply life prison sentences retrospectively in new reforms News
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UK to apply life prison sentences retrospectively in new reforms

The UK Ministry of Justice announced Tuesday its plans to further reform whole life orders, also known as life imprisonment, in the UK. Under these changes, those who have committed crimes and are awaiting their sentence can be given a whole life order, regardless of if the offense is committed before this legislation is put into place.

This announcement means that reforms previously announced by the UK government regarding whole life orders will now apply to active cases.  In light of the changes, judges will now be expected to give these sentences “where it is a possibility[,] unless there are exceptional circumstances not to.” Additionally, whole life orders can only be terminated if there are “exceptional compassionate grounds” to release the prisoner.

On Wednesday, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak released a statement via X (formerly Twitter) regarding the new plans. He emphasized the importance of punishing those who commit “heinous” crimes, and stated that his government “will legislate for sexual and sadistic murders to carry a full life term with no prospect of release.”

These newest reforms build on previous plans announced by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in August. Sunak announced his plans to  increase the use of whole life orders and create a legal expectation for judges to give them to “those who commit the most horrific types of murder.” The plan was intended to ensure, according to Sunak, that “[s]ociety’s most depraved killers will face life behind bars with no chance of being released.”

When the changes were first announced in August, barristers argued the new plan was redundant. According to barristers, under Schedule 21 of the Sentencing Act 2020, judges are already given the discretion to set a minimum term in relation to the mandatory life sentence for murder. Barrister Joanna Hardy-Susskind instead drew attention to other issues in the UK legal system that she believed deserved more attention, such as significant delays in trial dates and inefficient use of courts.

While no bill regarding Tuesday’s proposed changes has yet been announced, the Ministry of Justice stated, “The government will legislate as soon as parliamentary time allows to introduce these reforms.”

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