Parliamentary Bills
| DOI | 10.1177/002201837203600209 |
| Published date | 01 April 1972 |
| Date | 01 April 1972 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
Parliamentary Bills
A
PARLIAMENTARY
BILL
does not always reach the Statute
Book. Bills
are
frequently amended
during
their passage
through Parliament. This section should be read accordingly.
CRIMINAL
JUSTICE
BILL
Criminal Justice Bills used to
appear
at
intervals of
just
over
20
years.
Of
recent years they have been presented much more
frequently, due, no doubt, to the increased
tempo
of modern life
and
the more
rapid
change in penological thought.
The
present Bill provides new non-custodial methods of
treatment aimed
at
reformation
and
rehabilitation,
and
also
contains
many
"tidying
up"
provisions which seem to be inspired
by a comprehensive experience.
The
Bill deals extensively with property, both
that
which is
the subject of the charge
and
also
that
used in the commission of
the offence.
For the first time in legal history "offences taken into con-
sideration" receive statutory mention, although the administra-
tion of this widely used procedure is still left as a
matter
of
practice.
There
seems to be no
doubt
that
the
Bill will receive a
general welcome, if only for the abrogation of the ''functus
officio"
rule, which itself becomes well
and
truly "functus".
IMPRISONMENT
The
First Offenders Act I958, which prohibited first offenders
being sent to prison unless exceptional circumstances were present,
is repealed.
The
Bill applies similar provisions to all persons over
the age of 2 I years who have not been previously imprisoned.
A
Court
must not imprison such a person unless it considers
that
no
other
method of dealing with him is suitable.
In
making this
decision the
Court
must consider "information
about
the circum-
stances"
and
any information
that
is in fact before the
Court
about
his character
and
mental condition. This does not necessarily
involve a probation officer's report although in practice one
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