Courts issued with new guideline for sentencing drug offenders

It will bring sentencing guidance together for the first time to help to ensure consistent and proportionate sentencing for all drug offences that come before courts in England and Wales.

The guideline covers the most commonly sentenced offences - importation, production, supply, permitting premises to be used for drug offences and possession. All drugs from class A to C are covered by the guideline, which will be used for sentencing in both the Crown Court and magistrates’ courts.

Under the new guideline there are likely to be increased sentence lengths for those guilty of large scale production offences and reduced sentence lengths for drug mules. Sentences for drug mules - who are usually vulnerable and exploited by organised criminals - will have a starting point of six years imprisonment*.

There will be no change in sentencing for possession or drug supply offences. Where an offender profits from selling drugs, a prison sentence can be expected.  Street dealers who have a significant role in selling class A drugs, particularly those who sell drugs for profit can expect a custodial sentence with a starting point of four and a half years. Sentences could go up to 16 years for a single incident depending on the quantity of drugs involved.

The guideline also introduces a new aggravating factor to supply offences to ensure that where offenders are dealing to those under the age of 18 they are treated more severely.

The publication of the guideline follows a public consultation on the Council’s draft proposals, which heard from nearly 700 members of the public, criminal justice professionals and other interested parties. The responses received were extremely helpful and influenced the final guideline.

The Sentencing Council also conducted public research into attitudes to sentencing for drug offences, which revealed that there was little support for custodial sentences for drug possession or for substantial custodial penalties for small-scale supply or small to medium-scale importation offences. On the other hand, it did indicate that there was support for lengthy custodial sentences for medium to large-scale supply and large-scale importation offences.

Deputy Chairman of the Sentencing Council, Lord Justice Hughes, said:
"Drug offending has to be taken seriously.  Drug abuse underlies a huge volume of acquisitive and violent crime and dealing can blight communities.  Offending and offenders vary widely so we have developed this guideline to ensure there is effective guidance for sentencers and clear information for victims, witnesses and the public on how drug offenders are sentenced.

“This guideline reinforces current sentencing practice. Drug dealers can expect substantial jail sentences.

“We are grateful to everyone who gave us their views on our proposals. The wide ranging responses from both the public and criminal justice professionals have helped shape this guideline and make it more effective.”

Chief Constable Tim Hollis, the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) lead for Drugs said:

“The Association of Chief Police Officers welcomes the Sentencing Council drug offences guidelines. Police take the issue of tackling drug offences seriously and the sentencing of offenders provides part of the overall approach to combating such crime and reducing harm to local communities. The Council has clearly given a good deal of consideration to the new guidelines and has produced a document which provides the police and our criminal justice partners with consistent guidance yet still provides the courts with flexibility to deal with each case on its own merits where appropriate.”

Following the publication of the guideline, there will be a short implementation period and the guideline will be used in courts from 27 February 2012.

* A drug mule should not be confused with other types of offender sentenced for importation offences – if the court decides that he or she has a more significant role in importing drugs, then a longer prison sentence would be passed.

Notes to editors

1. The new guideline can be found on the Sentencing Council website:

2. The guideline covers:

• Fraudulent evasion of a prohibition by bringing into or taking out of the UK a controlled drug (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (section 3) and Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 (section 170(2))  commonly referred to as importation
• Supplying or offering to supply a controlled drug (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (section 4(3)) and Possession of a controlled drug with the intent to supply it to another (section 5(3)) 
• Production of a controlled drug (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (section 4(2)(a) or (b)) and Cultivation of cannabis plant (section 6(2))
• Permitting premises to be used (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (section 8) 
• Possession of a controlled drug (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (section 5(2))

4. The Sentencing Council was created by the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 to bring together the functions of the two previous bodies, the Sentencing Guidelines Council (SGC) and Sentencing Advisory Panel (SAP), which were disbanded. The Sentencing Council is a more streamlined body with a greater remit to take forward work on sentencing not only through improvements to guidelines but also through the development of a robust evidence base and engaging more with the public to improve understanding about sentences.

5. Sentencing guidelines are based on current legislation for criminal offences. The Sentencing Council does not have the power to create legislation or change current maximum sentences for offences.

For more information, please contact Nick Mann, Sentencing Council press officer, on 020 3334 0631 / email