The British government is planning to introduce new legislation that will require judges to impose full life sentences on the most heinous and sexually-motivated murderers, announced Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Saturday. Currently, the average life sentence served in the UK is between 15 and 20 years.
According to a statement from the prime minister’s office, the proposed law will target “society’s most depraved killers” and will include crimes such as sexually motivated murders. However, the specific criteria used to determine the level of depravity were not explained.
In the UK, most inmates serving life sentences are released after 15 to 20 years in prison, although longer sentences are not uncommon for particularly gruesome crimes. For instance, Jordan McSweeney, a sexual predator described by a judge as “a danger to any woman,” received a minimum term of 38 years in prison for the rape and murder of Zara Aleena, a law graduate. Similarly, Koci Selamaj received a minimum term of 36 years for the sexual assault and murder of Sabina Nessa, a teacher.
Prime Minister Sunak’s office stated that both perpetrators would have received whole-life sentences under the proposed legislation. Sunak emphasized that people expect life to mean life in the most serious cases. He said, “By bringing in mandatory whole life orders for the heinous criminals who commit the most horrific types of murder, we will make sure they never walk free.”
Currently, only 70 criminals in the UK are serving whole-life sentences. Among them are Wayne Couzens, a former police officer and murderer, David Fuller, a necrophiliac, and Lucy Letby, a former neonatal nurse who was recently sentenced for the homicide of seven babies and the attempted murder of six others.
It is expected that Sunak’s proposed law will be introduced between the King’s Speech in November and the next general election. Law and order are likely to be key campaign issues, and the Labour Party has already criticized Sunak for being “soft on crime.” Shadow justice secretary Steve Reed stated, “No one will take any lessons from this soft on crime Tory government. Under their watch, nine out of 10 crimes go unsolved and tens of thousands of dangerous criminals, including gunmen, child abductors, and sex offenders, have avoided jail sentences.”
In summary, the British government is set to introduce legislation that will require judges to impose whole life sentences on the most heinous and sexually-motivated murderers. This comes as a response to the public’s expectation that life should mean life in the most serious cases. The proposed law aims to ensure that individuals committing the most depraved crimes never walk free. However, criticism from the Labour Party suggests that the government needs to do more to address other aspects of law and order in the country.
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