Part 1 of Schedule 2 - Scotland – makes amendments to various enactments to ensure that sentences imposed under section 205ZC for national security-related offences are treated consistently with existing sentencing regimes for the purposes of related statutory provisions:
Paragraph 1 amends section 5(1)(da) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (as it applies in Scotland) to update the reference to include sentences imposed under section 205ZC for national security-related offences, ensuring that the correct disclosure periods apply to young offenders or children sentenced under section 205ZCParagraph 2 amends section 39(7B)(a) of the Prisons (Scotland) Act 1989 to ensure that prisoner rules relating to national security-related sentences apply to the new sentence.
Paragraphs 3(1) to (10) make a series of technical amendments to the Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993, including to sections 1, 1AB, 2, 3A, 3C, 267A and 27. These amendments ensure that offenders sentenced under section 205ZC of the 1995 Act for a national security-related offence are subject to the same release provisions as those sentenced under that section for other offences. In particular, they ensure that such offenders cannot be considered for release until two-thirds of their sentence has been served, and that they are subject to a mandatory licence period of at least one year.
Paragraph 4 amends the Schedule to the Repatriation of Prisoners Act 1984 as it applies to prisoners transferred to Scotland to serve their sentence. The amendment ensures that where a repatriated prisoner has been sentenced for an offence which corresponds to one of the national security-related offences listed in Part 2 of Schedule 5ZB to the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, the prisoner is treated, for the purposes of early release, as if they had been sentenced under section 205ZC of that Act. This means that the same release provisions apply- including the requirement to serve two-thirds of the custodial term before being eligible for release, and a mandatory licence period of at least one year – even though the sentence was imposed outside Scotland. The amendment allows Scottish Ministers to amend a warrant to specify that these provisions apply, including in cases where transfer has already taken place.
	Part 2 of Schedule 2 - Northern Ireland – makes amendments to the Criminal Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 2008 to ensure that Article 15A sentences imposed in respect of national security-related offences are treated consistently with existing sentencing regimes for the purposes of interpretation, release provisions, and related procedural rules:
Paragraphs 5(1) to (7) make amendments which include changes to terminology (such as removing the word "terrorism" from references to "Article 15A terrorism sentence") to reflect the broader application of Article 15A to national security-related offences. They also ensure that the release provisions in Article 20A apply to prisoners serving Article 15A sentences for national security-related offences listed in Schedule 2B to the 2008 Order – including the requirement to serve two-thirds of the custodial term before being eligible for release, and a mandatory licence period of at least one year. These changes ensure that the extended application of Article 15A to national security-related offences is fully integrated into the existing legislative framework governing sentencing and release in Northern Ireland.
Paragraph 6 amends the Schedule to the Repatriation of Prisoners Act 1984 as it applies to prisoners transferred to Northern Ireland to serve their sentence. The amendment ensures that where a repatriated prisoner has been sentenced for an offence which corresponds to one of the national security-related offences listed in Schedule 2B to the 2008 Order, the prisoner is treated, for the purposes of early release, as if they had been sentenced under Article 15A of that Order. This means that the same release provisions apply- including the requirement to serve two-thirds of the custodial term before being eligible for release, and a mandatory licence period of at least one year – even though the sentence was imposed outside Northern Ireland. The amendment allows the Department of Justice to amend a warrant to specify that these provisions apply, including in cases where transfer has already taken place.
Part 1: Sentencing Schedule 2: Sentence with fixed licence period in Scotland or Northern Ireland Consequential Provision