UK supports non-custodial sentencing for OTs young offenders – White Paper
In the June 2012 White Paper which was recently made public and presented to the UK Parliament, in the section The Overseas Territories Security, Success and Sustainability and in the subsection Rule of Law, it stated that the UK Government will continue to help the Territories find effective ways to deal with young offenders including though promoting the use of diversion from prosecution in appropriate cases and the use of rehabilitation.
“Diversion away from the criminal justice system, with support and guidance applied correctly, can help prevent the risk of young offenders becoming repeat offenders. We will work with the Territories to demonstrate that diversion and rehabilitation can help turn the lives of many young offenders around and in turn, delivers longer term savings in criminal justice systems and societies,” the White Paper states.
The Paper further outlined that for small islands with relatively small prison populations, custody is an expensive, and sometimes impractical way to deal with offenders and therefore non-custodial sentences can offer an alternative and can have dramatic effects on reducing reoffending rates when compared to prison for certain types of offenders.
The White Paper went on to state that the majority of Territories have only a single prison where total numbers of prisoners are small and facilities often limited, but in some Territories the overall incarceration rate is amongst the highest in the world which leads to crowded prisons with an average of 30% over capacity across the Territory prison system.
It further states that the small size of the prisons in the islands also means that it can be difficult, if not impossible to separate offenders with specific needs, such as minors, women or high risk offenders. Facilities to promote rehabilitation and treat offenders who require specialist treatment, such as those convicted of sexual offences, are often not available.
Rehabilitative Prison Systems
Meanwhile, it also stated that the UK Government supports the aim of increasing the range of sentences available to the courts. “Several Territories now have probation services in place and some good results are being achieved. The Ministry of Justice supports this work and officials from the Parole Board have recently travelled to some Territories to help to train justice professionals including probation staff.”
The UK Government also stated in the White Paper that they will continue to work with the Territory Governments to support this move to a more rehabilitative prison system that is better equipped to deal with specialist requirements. The key to achieving this, it stated, is building capacity through pooling and sharing of expertise.
According to UK’s Prime Minister David Cameron, the White Paper sets out the UK’s commitment to work with the Territories to address the challenges they face together and also celebrates the diversity, successes and opportunities in the Territories.
The UK states that it will work with Territory Governments to implement priorities identified in this Paper in ways that are appropriate for each Territory and that the agenda identified in this Paper will evolve as new challenges and opportunities emerge.
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