The coalition government tabled an amendment to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act as part of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill on 3 February.

This amendment was tabled in the House of Lords by Rt Hon Lord McNally, who is Minister of State for Justice and a Liberal Democrat peer. It includes positive changes to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act, including reducing the length of time after which certain sentences are considered spent. These amendments are due to be debated this week, and Nacro will keep supporters updated.

Paul McDowell has welcomed the government’s proposed reforms, but calls for the government to make further changes and go beyond its proposals. Speaking at the time, he said:

‘These long-overdue reforms will significantly help those people who have offended in the past and are now living law-abiding lives. Reformed offenders face barriers to employment because of old criminal records hanging around their necks.

‘[The] proposed amendments will mean that more people will be able to secure work, give something back to society and lead productive lives.

‘These amendments are a big step in the right direction, and we applaud the government for making a positive step towards supporting ex-offenders into employment.

‘Despite the proposed changes, the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act will still present barriers to people who have put their offending behind them, particularly those who have served over four years in prison. We will therefore continue to work with the government and our partners to secure lasting change.’

What the government’s proposed changes would mean

Current legislation

Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, ex-offenders have the right not to disclose their offence after a period of time as follows:

• Offences resulting in fines do not have to be disclosed after five years.
• Offences resulting in prison sentences of six months or less do not have to be disclosed after seven years.
• Offences resulting in prison sentences of two-and-a-half years do not have to be disclosed after 10 years.
• Offences resulting in prison sentences of more than 30 months are never spent.

The time periods above during which ex-offenders must disclose their offences are called rehabilitation periods. For those under 18, the rehabilitation periods above are halved.

Proposed reforms to the Act

Under the amended legislation, rehabilitation periods would change as follows:

• Offences resulting in fines do not have to be disclosed after one year
• Offences resulting in prison sentences of six months or less do not have to be disclosed after two years.
• Offences resulting in prison sentences of six months to 30 months do not have to be disclosed after four years.
• Offences resulting in prison sentences of 30 months to four years do not have to be disclosed after seven years.
• Offences over four years are never spent.

These proposed changes are slightly different from the existing time periods in that they don’t start until a sentence is finished (including time spent on license). So someone who is sentenced to four years in prison would have to declare their convictions for a full eleven years. Time periods for those under 18 are still halved.