On 27 March 2012, the Ministry of Justice published a consultation on community sentencing entitled Punishment and Reform: Effective Community Sentences (Cm 8334). The consultation seeks views on a set of proposed reforms to the way sentences served in the community operate in England and Wales. Whilst the consultation looks at how restorative justice can be further employed to reduce offending rates, it also seeks support for increasing the punitive element of community sentences and making better use of electronic monitoring. JUSTICE’s response expresses caution in attempting to make what is already a punishment appear to be more punitive, whilst welcoming measures to ensure sentences reflect the circumstances of the individual offender and aim at reducing the return to crime.
020 7329 5100 / admin@justice.org.uk