Member

Can the Minister explain why we cannot prioritise people who were convicted before major changes to the sentences were made in 2008? Surely the extra injustice suffered by this cohort demands immediate action. The 2008 changes, which introduced a new seriousness threshold and some degree of judicial discretion, were made in response to recognised human rights concerns at the time. But as with the abolition four years later, shamefully, these changes were not retrospective and left thousands in limbo, many of whom are still in prison despite the manifestly unfair process that led them to be there in the first place. Why can we not deal with these cases immediately as a matter of urgency, as the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, will no doubt ask shortly when he speaks to his Amendments 11 and 12? Why can we not do all the things proposed by the amendments in this group? The truth is that we can, if the political will is there. If the Government refuse to do so, we have every right to demand that they tell us why.