Part 7: Sentencing and release Chapter 1: Custodial sentences Section 136: Release at direction of Parole Board after recall: fixed-term prisoners
Section 136 amends the provisions dealing with the recall and further release of prisoners in Chapter 6 of Part 12 of the CJA 2003.
	Subsection (2) amends section 255B of the CJA 2003 which deals with recalled prisoners who are subject to automatic release after a fixed period. New subsection (4A) is inserted to specify that when considering whether to direct the re-release of a prisoner early within that fixed period, the Board must not direct release unless satisfied that the public protection test (being the test specified for all other parole release cases) is met.
	Subsection (3) amends section 255C of the CJA 2003 which deals with recalled prisoners who are not subject to automatic release. New subsection (4A) is inserted to specify that when considering whether to direct re-release following the recall, the Board must not direct release unless satisfied that the public protection test is met.
	Subsection (4) omits section 256 of the CJA 2003. That section concerns prisoners who have been recalled to custody and their case referred by the Secretary of State to the Parole Board for a decision on whether to direct the prisoner’s re-release on licence. The section provides that where the Parole Board does not direct the prisoner’s immediate release it must either fix a specific date for release or determine the reference by making no direction for release. The ability for the Parole Board to fix a specific date for release, and consequentially section 256 of the CJA 2003, is no longer needed as a consequence of the amends made by this section to sections 255B, 255C and 256A of the CJA 2003 and the new provision for timing of release made by section 137.
	Subsection (5) amends section 256A of the CJA 2003 dealing with the further review of recalled prisoners. Subsection (1) of that section is substituted for new subsections (1) and (1A) to provide where release of a prisoner is not directed following their initial recall, the Secretary of State is required to refer their case back to the Parole Board for a decision on release within one year of the Parole Board decision. New subsection (1B) provides that referral is not required if the date on which the Secretary of State is to automatically release the prisoner is less than 13 months from the previous Parole Board decision. Subsections (4) and (5) are substituted to provide that following the referral the Parole Board must not direct release of the prisoner unless satisfied that the public protection test is met and if such a direction is given the Secretary of State must give effect to that direction.
	Subsection (6) inserts a new section 256AZA into the CJA 2003 dealing with release after recall where an offender recalled to custody is serving two or more terms of imprisonment or detention. In those circumstances the new section provides that nothing in the release after recall provisions (sections 255A to 256A of the CJA 2003) requires the Secretary of State to release the recalled offender in respect of any of his terms of imprisonment or detention unless and until the Secretary of State is required to release the offender in respect of each of the terms. The section also provides that nothing in those provisions requires the Secretary of State to refer the recalled offender’s case to the Parole Board in respect of any of the terms unless and until the Secretary of State is required either to refer the offenders case to the Board, or release the offender, in respect of each of the terms. As a consequence, a recalled offender may not have their case referred to the Parole Board in accordance with the release after recall provisions if at the point a referral is otherwise required to be made they are serving another term of imprisonment or detention which does not then require such referral.
	Subsection (7) removes a transitional provision for prisoners subject to earlier release provisions which becomes redundant on the omission of section 256 of the CJA 2003.