Curfews on criminals may be tightened

Criminals who are spared jail could be forced to stay indoors for up to 16 hours a day as judges are given tougher sentencing powers, the Government announced today.

Curfew orders currently allow convicts to be away from home for at least 12 hours each day, but Ministers want to tighten the law to bring more order to offenders’ chaotic lives.

The maximum daily curfew time would be extended from 12 to 16 hours, and courts would be able to impose the orders for up to a year. The current limit is only six months.

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The proposals are among a raft of measures which have been suggested by the Ministry of Justice to reduce the prison population.

Other plans being taken forward in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill include replacing controversial indeterminate sentences with more life terms.

A new offence of aggravated knife possession, carrying a minimum prison term of six months, may be introduced.

Previously announced moves have included privatising jails and introducing payment-by-results schemes to encourage firms to rehabilitate drug users.

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Prisons and Probation Minister Crispin Blunt said: “These tougher curfew conditions will keep offenders off the street for longer, stop them socialising in the evenings and keep them away from situations that could land them in trouble again.

“This is part of our proposals to reform the criminal justice system and will help to keep communities safe whilst important work is done with offenders to turn them away from a life of crime.”

The changes would allow courts to vary curfew hours from day to day. About 24,000 offenders are electronically monitored at any one time. Offenders face being brought back to court if they break the terms of their curfew.