header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
27 September 2007 / Ruth Brander , Alison Gerry
Issue: 7290 / Categories: Features , Public
printer mail-detail

Public Law Update

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.

IMPRISONMENT FOR PUBLIC PROTECTION >>
LEGAL AID REFORMS >>
REPORTING RESTRICTIONS AT CORONER’S INQUEST >>

Scheme of imprisonment for public protection irrational

In R (on the application of Wells) v Parole Board; R (on the application of Walker) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2007] EWHC 1835, [2007] All ER (D) 479 (Jul) the court was asked to consider the rationality of the government’s actions in introducing a new sentence of imprisonment for public protection (IPP) while failing to anticipate its effect on the prison population and to provide for the increase in the number of lifer prisoners. There are currently 2,547 prisoners serving IPP sentences, with the median tariff being just 30 months. But the number of funded first stage and second stage prison places, required in order that an IPP (and lifer) prisoner can progress through the system towards release, has not risen since April 2005 when the new sentences were introduced. This is despite the introduction of the new sentences having increased the lifer population by 31% in 2006.

Lack of opportunity to demonstrate risk reduction

The

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Read All
Sponsored by
Hogan Lovells—Lisa Quelch

Hogan Lovells—Lisa Quelch

Partner hire strengthens global infrastructure and energy financing practice

Sherrards—Jan Kunstyr

Sherrards—Jan Kunstyr

Legal director bolsters international expertise in dispute resolution team

Muckle LLP—Stacey Brown

Muckle LLP—Stacey Brown

Corporate governance and company law specialist joins the team

NEWS
Read All
Legal notice: Notice under the Trustee Act 1925

NOTICE UNDER THE TRUSTEE ACT 1925

HERBERT SMITH STAFF PENSION SCHEME (THE “SCHEME”)

NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND BENEFICIARIES UNDER SECTION 27 OF THE TRUSTEE ACT 1925
Emergency lawyers on call as international regulatory actions soar
Law firm HFW is offering clients lawyers on call for dawn raids, sanctions issues and other regulatory emergencies
NLJ this week: Employment law’s fine margins
From gender-critical speech to notice periods and incapability dismissals, employment law continues to turn on fine distinctions. In his latest employment law brief for NLJ, Ian Smith of Norwich Law School reviews a cluster of recent decisions, led by Bailey v Stonewall, where the Court of Appeal clarified the limits of third-party liability under the Equality Act
NLJ this week: Promises broken on non-molestation orders?
Non-molestation orders are meant to be the frontline defence against domestic abuse, yet their enforcement often falls short. Writing in NLJ this week, Jeni Kavanagh, Jessica Mortimer and Oliver Kavanagh analyse why the criminalisation of breach has failed to deliver consistent protection
NLJ this week: Assisted dying under the legal microscope
Assisted dying remains one of the most fraught fault lines in English law, where compassion and criminal liability sit uncomfortably close. Writing in NLJ this week, Julie Gowland and Barny Croft of Birketts examine how acts motivated by care—booking travel, completing paperwork, or offering emotional support—can still fall within the wide reach of the Suicide Act 1961
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll