This Act makes provision to ensure that certain offences involving or connected with a threat to national security become eligible for a Sentence for Offenders of Particular Concern (SOPC). Bringing these offences into the SOPC regime removes the possibility of them being eligible for a Standard Determinate Sentence (SDS). This applies to both adults and children.
	For the purposes of this policy, the relevant offences are those under the National Security Act 2023 and Official Secrets Acts that carry a maximum penalty of more than two years’ imprisonment, as well as those which are determined by the court to have a foreign power connection under section 69A of the Sentencing Code, and inchoate offences. Previously these offences were generally only eligible for an SDS, barring a few specific offences which carry a maximum penalty of life.
	A SOPC is mandatory for offenders convicted of certain terrorism offences (those with a maximum penalty of more than two years’ imprisonment), terrorism connected offences and certain sexual offences against children, where the court decided that the dangerousness / seriousness threshold has not been met for an Extended Determinate Sentence (EDS) or life sentence. SOPCs comprise a custodial term and licence period of one year following release. The offender becomes eligible for release, at the discretion of the Parole Board, once they have served two thirds of their custodial term.
	Certain states are becoming increasingly assertive in how they advance their own objectives and undermine the safety and interests of the UK, including operating covertly in an attempt to interfere with the UK’s national security, economy and democracy. The Act seeks to better reflect the significant risk that can be presented by those who commit the offences in scope of this change, due to their potential adverse impact on national security and scale of resource, by making them eligible for the SOPC regime. This also aligns the approach more closely with sentencing and release arrangements for equivalent terrorist offenders.
	As national security is a reserved matter in Scotland and excepted matter in Northern Ireland, the Act also makes corresponding provision to ensure its effect applies UK-wide.
Policy background Part 1: Sentencing Offenders of particular concern