Schedule 8: Costs in criminal cases: service courts Schedule 17: Restatement of transitional provision Chapter 5: Dangerous Offenders Section 122 and Schedules 18 and 19: Life sentence for second listed offence
637.Section 122 inserts a new section 224A (life sentence for second listed offence) into the 1991 Act, together with a new Schedule 15B (which is set out in Schedule 18). Schedule 19 contains related consequential and transitory provision.
638.New section 224A provides that a court must impose a life sentence on a person aged 18 or over who is convicted of an offence listed in Part 1 of Schedule 15B of that Act which is serious enough to justify a sentence of imprisonment of 10 years or more, if that person has previously been convicted of an offence listed in any Part of Schedule 15B and was sentenced to imprisonment for life or for a period of 10 years or more in respect of that previous offence. Parts 2 to 4 of new Schedule 15B include offences under legislation which is no longer applicable, offences in other UK jurisdictions and those of other member States of the European Union, as well as offences under service law.
639.However, the court is not obliged to impose a life sentence where it is of the opinion that there are particular circumstances which relate to the offence, the previous offence or the offender which would make it unjust to do so in all the circumstances.