Blunkett: I'll put the sense back into sentencing

DAVID BLUNKETT today used his first major speech on law and order to promise that he will "put the sense back into sentencing" to restore confidence in British justice.

As the Evening Standard revealed last week, he wants to keep violent and sex offenders in jail for longer and make sure that courts hand down tougher sentences to career criminals who will not go straight.

The Home Secretary admits that although Labour has cut crime rates, public faith in the ability to catch, punish and reform criminals, is at a low ebb.

News of the early release of James Bulger's killers and the sense of injustice surrounding the case of Tony Martin, who shot dead a burglar, have added to the sense that justice does not serve victims of crime.

Britain, whose prison population is at a record 66,611, is now second only to Portugal as the most enthusiastic jailer in Europe - but the public perception is that courts are too soft on criminals.

The Home Secretary distanced himself from both the "lock 'em up brigade" and "liberals defending the rights of offenders". He wants prison used for serious persistent criminals and hopes to win public confidence for tougher community punishments for those who, at the moment, get short jail terms and come out unchanged.

At the lowest end of offending he wants the system to deliver a "virtual clip around the ear"; a chance to reform which, if not taken, would lead to increasingly severe punishments. But he stressed: "The objective is not to increase the prison population but to prevent people going into prison in the first place."

He said it was "crackers" to put people in jail for a short time without any measures to change them or any plan for when they come out.

For persistent offenders, however, the courts should hand down increasingly severe punishments, he said.

At the launch of the new National Probation Service today, Mr Blun- kett said it was neces-

sary to balance demands for prevention, protection and punishment, with the need to make criminals mend their ways. "We need to put the sense back into sentencing," he said.

"The current system is not working. About 56 per cent of offenders who have served a community or a custodial sentence go on to offend again within two years.

Half of all crimes are committed by a hardcore of about 100,000 criminals," he said.

Harry Fletcher of the National Association of Probation Officers called the package "tough and tender", adding: "He is the first Home Secretary for 10 years who has stressed the crucial importance of rehabilitation in cutting crime."

DAVID BLUNKETT'S plans are shaped by the Making Punishments Work document, a study by former Home Office director of criminal justice policy, John Halliday. Key proposals include: * Tougher conditions and supervision for an extra 80,000 prisoners a year after their release from jail.

* Longer sentences for persistent offenders under a "totting up" system with harsher penalties each time they face a court.

* Dangerous offenders will stay longer in jail as automatic consideration for parole is scrapped when they reach the two-thirds point of their term.

* More work in prisons to reduce re-offending by putting thousands of inmates through behaviour programmes and literacy and numeracy classes.

* Seamless sentences for less serious offenders who would serve a maximum of three months, then face supervision for nine months with the risk of being returned to jail.

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