Part 1: Counter-terrorism Chapter 2: Punishment and management of terrorist offenders Section 10: Extended sentences for terrorism offenders: Scotland
This section amends provisions in Part 11 of the 1995 Act which, amongst other things, enables a criminal court in Scotland to impose an extended sentence on a sex or violent offender when certain conditions are met (section 210A).
	Under the provisions of section 210A of the 1995 Act the court is able to impose an "extended sentence" on an offender who is convicted of a relevant sexual or violent offence and receives a determinate sentence of imprisonment of any length in respect of a sexual offence or a sentence of four years or more in respect of a violent offence. Imposition of an extended sentence provides for an additional period of supervision on licence in the community over and above that which would normally have been the case. An extended sentence may only be passed where a person is convicted on indictment and if the court is of the opinion that the period of supervision on licence, which the offender would otherwise be subject to, would not be adequate for the protection of the public from serious harm from the offender.
	An extended sentence is defined, by section 210A(2), as being the aggregate of the term of imprisonment which the court would otherwise have passed ("the custodial term") and a further period, known as the "extension period", for which the offender is to be on licence (and which is in addition to any licence period attributable to the "custodial term"). The extension period must not exceed 10 years and the total length of an extended sentence must not exceed any statutory maximum for a particular offence.
	The following example demonstrates how the extended sentence arrangements work in practice. A sex offender sentenced to a four-year custodial term and a three-year extension period would serve a seven-year extended sentence. If released after two years, with the agreement of the Parole Board of Scotland, they will be on licence for the balance of the custodial period, that is two years plus a further three years, namely five years in total on licence. If the Parole Board does not authorise discretionary early release, the offender will serve the entire four-year custodial sentence in prison and then be released on licence for a further three years.
	Section 210A(10) of the 1995 Act defines sexual and violent offence for the purposes of section 210A. A "violent offence" is defined as "any offence (other than an offence which is a sexual offence within the meaning of this section) inferring personal violence". As such, this definition does not cover all the terrorism offences now listed in the new Part 3 of Schedule 15 to the 2003 Act (inserted by section 8). The amendments to section 210A provide that the ability of the court to impose an extended sentence will apply to sexual, violent and terrorism offences, with the definition of a "terrorism offence" matching that in the new Part 3 of Schedule 15 to the 2003 Act. The extended licence period of up to ten years will apply to terrorism offences as it does now to sexual and violent offences.