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Armed Forces Bill

moved Amendment No. 140: After Clause 164, insert the following new clause- ““SENTENCING (1) The sentence passed by the Court Martial shall be determined by the judge advocate. (2) In determining the appropriate sentence, the judge advocate shall consult the members of the Court Martial.”” The noble Lord said: This is a radical change to the existing system and I am sure that it will meet with opposition, as other radical changes have done. The amendment calls for the sentence in a court martial to be determined by the judge advocate. At the moment, the judge advocate has a vote and a casting vote, but sentencing is determined by the panel as a whole. If courts martial were confined to disciplinary proceedings, it would of course be appropriate for the panel to pass the sentence, but under new Clause 42 of the Bill and existing Section 72 of the Army Act 1955, the court has jurisdiction over the whole body of criminal offences. Having sat through criminal justice Bill after criminal justice Bill and Bills consolidating sentencing on top of that, noble Lords will be aware that the area of sentencing for criminal offences is difficult and complex. As I have said before, sentencing is an exercise for which the members of the panel have no training whatever. They do not attend sentencing conferences or have the training on sentencing that the most junior assistant recorder in this country receives, let alone any further or higher training for dealing with serious offences, such as rape or manslaughter. Although it is traditional for the president of the court to pass the sentence and for the members of the court martial to determine the sentence, it is contrary to the sentencing practice of the courts of this country. Members of the panel are not obliged to follow any advice that may be given to them by the sentencing judge. Members of the panel do not have experience of the new sentences, such as community service, that are contained in the Bill or of the effect of probation and when such things are appropriate. They do not read Criminal Appeal Reports (Sentencing). They have no guidance whatever. This is a reform that the Judge Advocate General, Judge Blackett, has promoted. He wants this power. From his experience, he considers it appropriate for the judge advocate, who has the training and experience and is accustomed to passing sentence, to be concerned with sentencing. No doubt where disciplinary or technical matters are concerned the judge advocate can consult the members of the panel, but it should not be the other way around. The expert on sentencing is the judge advocate, not members of the panel, and he should carry that responsibility in the appeal court where any appeals are lodged against the sentence that he has passed. With the greatest respect for those who hold and who have held the highest positions within the services, I do not think that it is good enough to uphold the present position. I would not, as a lawyer, attempt to advise or direct the leading members of our services how to conduct a campaign or how to conduct operations. I have no experience in that. Similarly, in the reverse situation, as here, I ask the Committee to agree to what the Judge Advocate General has promoted and supported—that the sentencing power should lie in the right hands, with the experts. I beg to move.