David Lammy promises 25% cut in number of children jailed while they await trial
Summary
Justice Secretary David Lammy has announced plans to reduce the number of children kept in jail while waiting for trial by 25%. His plans also include cutting short jail sentences for under-18s, creating new community options for young offenders, and reviewing how childhood crimes affect lifelong criminal records.Key Facts
- David Lammy promises to cut youth remand (jail before trial) by 25% by the end of the current parliament.
- The plan aims to reduce the overall number of children in prison by 20%.
- An extra £15 million per year will be spent on teams working with children at risk of offending.
- New "youth intervention courts" will offer personalized plans to keep children out of jail.
- Judges will have more options to give community sentences instead of jail for youth offenders.
- A new offence will be introduced to punish adults who encourage children to commit crimes.
- The government will consult on ending lifelong criminal records for crimes committed as children.
- About 80% of major offenders started committing crimes as children; two-thirds reoffend within a year after release.
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