Female Offender Strategy

Lord Thomas of Gresford Excerpts

Monday 21st June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Thomas of Gresford (LD) [V]]

What steps have the Government taken to introduce gender-specific sentencing guidelines to encourage judges and magistrates to approach sentencing women from a completely different starting point from that for men? Does the Minister agree that equal sentencing guidelines for men and women do not result in equality of outcome, having regard to the specific problems that women have to deal with while incarcerated and afterwards?

[Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)]

My Lords, I agree that we should be working with the courts system to ensure that judges and magistrates understand the particular issues for women and issue sentences accordingly.