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Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill

My Lords, I say in support of the amendment that the court, when it passes a sentence of custody, is amply able and capable of determining whether the custody is a measure of last resort. It is amply able to determine whether, "““the offence committed caused or could reasonably have been expected to cause serious physical or psychological harm””," and that it, "““is necessary to protect the public””." Those are issues that sentencers customarily have to resolve. The purpose of introducing this threshold is to show that only where physical or psychological harm is occasioned to members of the public, and there is a risk of it continuing, should custody be used in respect of a person under the age of 18. From these Benches, we are trying to rebalance the system so that custody is not seen as an appropriate sentence for minor or major dishonesties, fraud or whatever, for those who are under the age of 18, but should be reserved for where there is serious physical or psychological harm, or the threat of it.