Young offenders face lengthy ‘house arrest’

Major shake-up of justice system proposes tough detention at home to replace short jail sentences

Teenage criminals could be put under tough “house arrest” to prevent them reoffending. A White Paper proposed Robert Buckland, the Justice Secretary, said they should only be allowed out for training, education or a job. Courts could also impose restrictions to alert probation officers if they started drinking, to curb internet use and to make attendance at drug or alcohol treatment centres compulsory. It would be “a highly restrictive and lengthy curfew”, said the White Paper.

TEENAGE criminals face lengthy and punitive “house arrests” to prevent them reoffending under a crackdown announced yesterday by ministers.

In a White Paper on sentencing, Robert

Buckland, the Justice Secretary, proposed giving judges the power to impose a “tough new form of ‘house detention’ that severely restricts liberty”.

It would be enforced through GPS electronic tags that would immediately alert police and probation officers if they tried to leave their house.

They would only be allowed out to attend training, education or a job.

Courts could also impose extra restrictions including sobriety tags, which would alert probation officers if they started drinking, curbs on internet use and compulsory attendance at drug or alcohol treatment centres.

“This would be a robust order, which would be served in the community and would be based on a highly restrictive and lengthy curfew, that would fully exploit GPS tagging technology,” said the White Paper.

“We envisage the order would provide a strong punitive response to crime in a way that current community sentences do not, while enabling those offenders in training, education or employment to maintain those obligations.”

Mr Buckland plans pilots of the orders for under-21s before extending them nationwide and potentially to older criminals. They would not be used against those who would have otherwise received a custodial sentence.

Low-level offenders jailed for less than six months are, on average, responsible for 65 crimes “with community sentences having been tried and failed”, according to the White Paper. Eighty per cent of crime is committed by reoffenders.

In a further toughening of community sentences, courts will get powers to extend curfews on offenders from the current limit of one year to two years.

They could also impose longer curfews of up to 20 hours a day, primarily at weekends, to “increase the punitive nature of a curfew but also enhance rehabilitative benefits such as cutting ties between offenders and criminal associates”, the White Paper added.

The reforms are designed to boost the chances of rehabilitation of offenders, who would otherwise be in and out of prison on short-term sentences, at the same time as protecting the public.

The approach is allied to longer sentences for serious offenders, which will increase prisoner numbers by 2,600 by 2028 at a cost of about £1 billion, equivalent to £385,000 per place, according to an impact assessment. The Government is committed to a £2.5 billion, 10,000 prison place expansion.

Mr Buckland also said he wanted to encourage greater use of “deferred sentences” under which criminals can escape jail or other punishments if they agree to rehabilitation. The judge can lift the threat of prison up to six months after the deferral if their rehabilitation has been successful.

The Justice Secretary said it would be for “exceptional circumstances”.