Background and Policy Objectives Release on licence of child convicted of serious offence
21.Children found guilty of particularly serious offences may be sentenced to a period of detention. Under Articles 45(2) and 46 of the Criminal Justice (Children)(Northern Ireland) Order 1998 it is a matter for the Minister of Justice to decide when within the sentence period a child should be released, under what licence conditions and under what circumstances the child should be recalled to custody. This process has been declared incompatible with Article 5 of the ECHR because it lacks judicial or judicial-style independence. The Act introduces this required element by transferring the powers currently held by the Minister to the sentencing judge and the Parole Commissioners for Northern Ireland.