Tougher safety sentencing guidelines on the horizon

The consultation on the new guidelines, proposed by The Sentencing Council, in conjunction with the judiciary, legal practitioners and stakeholders within industries affected by the new guidelines, aims make court judgements more appropriate to both offenders and offences.

The consultation follows the implementation of new environmental guidelines, which came into force in July 2014. The environmental guidelines apply to waste and environmental permitting offences in particular, and can lead to staggeringly high fines.

The proposed guidelines enable prosecutors to deliver sentencing and fines that are more consistent across the country. To decide a reasonable penalty, a ‘nine step’ guide has been released, which follows the model established in sentencing environmental offences. This ranges from compensation and confiscation based on the size and means of any offender and the level of cooperation with the investigation.

Sentencing will be determined depending on company size, then, using the following two factors to calculate the proportional fine: ‘harm’ and ‘likelihood’.

Harm is split into three levels, with ‘A’ being death and serious injury resulting in life long dependency, ‘B’ being physical injury and inability to work and ‘C’ being the remainder of outcomes where charges are applicable, such as minor injuries.

Each level is then divided into three likelihood categories: ‘high’, ‘medium’ and ‘remote’, to create a formula for specific Harm Category’s to ascertain the culpability of offenders. Fines will differentiate based on company size and financial circumstances.

Amy Batch, legal author, Cedrec

These are hefty fines and rightly so. For too long, cases have been handled with varying results. Companies should not consider the price of compliance by comparing it with the fines involved. The higher the fine, the more deterring it is. Furthermore, for those concerned, the fines are set out in such a way that damage and responsibility for the offence is taken into consideration.

This makes the fines more proportional to the offences and fulfils the main purpose of these guidelines, to give more clarity and structure to punishments. There are still grey areas however, as the court can ignore a company’s previous offences when delivery their judgement, but it is progress on a clearer sentencing system.

[ENDS]