Citation and commencement

1.  This Order may be cited as the Release of Short-Term Prisoners on Licence (Amendment of Requisite Period) Order 2003 and shall come into force on 14th July 2003.

Revocation

2.  The Release of Short-Term Prisoners on Licence (Amendment of Requisite Period) Order 2002(2) is hereby revoked.

Requisite period

3.—(1) In section 34A(4)(b) of the Criminal Justice Act 1991(3), for “twelve months” there is substituted “eighteen months”.

(2) In section 34A(4)(c) of that Act(4), for “twelve months” there is substituted “eighteen months”, and for “90 days” there is substituted “135 days”.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order amends section 34A(4) of the Criminal Justice Act 1991, which defines “the requisite period” after which a short-term prisoner to whom section 34A(1) of that Act applies may be released on licence pursuant to section 34A(3) of that Act. Section 34A(4) was previously amended by the Release of Short-Term Prisoners on Licence (Amendment of Requisite Period) Order 2002, which is revoked by this Order.

As previously amended, section 34A(4)(b) required short-term prisoners with terms of imprisonment of four months or more but less than twelve months to serve a period equal to one-quarter of their term before becoming eligible for release under that section. Section 34A(4)(c) required short-term prisoners with terms of twelve months or more to serve a period that was 90 days less than one-half of their term before becoming so eligible.

This Order amends the definition of “the requisite period” so that prisoners with terms of imprisonment of four months or more but less than eighteen months serve one-quarter of their term before becoming eligible for release. For those short-term prisoners with terms of imprisonment of eighteen months or more, the requisite period is amended by this Order to be a period that is 135 days less than one-half of their term.