Justice Secretary, David Gauke has announced plans to scrap jail terms lasting less than six months in England and Wales.The move, however, which excludes some exceptions for violent and sexual offences, is dependent on there being robust community frameworks in place to protect the public and reduce the numbers of those reoffending.He claims that there is credible evidence to suggest that short sentences don’t work in rehabilitating offenders and that community sentences can be effective in reducing reoffending. According to the Ministry of Justice, research shows that two thirds of those sentenced to six months or less behind bars are “statistically more likely” to re-offend than those given community sentences.Under the MoJ’s proposal, up to 30,000 offenders, inc...
