The Sentencing Act 2026 received royal assent on 22 January 2026. The news story on Gov.uk was “Sentencing Act ensuring punishment cuts crime gets Royal Assent” and a sub-headline stating: “New laws will end automatic release for badly behaved offenders and strengthen community punishment.”
So how will that change things on the ground?
The short answer is that very little will change immediately. The press release states:
“The measures in the Sentencing Act will not take effect immediately, giving the probation service and victims support groups the time needed to prepare for the changes coming in. Implementation will be phased over the next two years, with changes to how long offenders stay in prison when they are recalled expected to begin in the coming months, and the earned release model to be rolled out in the Autumn.”
Section 49 outlines how the Act will be implemented.
It states that the only provisions that came in to force on 22 January 2026 were sections 25 and 28 which essentially ensure those sentenced for certain offences under various Acts that deal with armed forces are dealt with in the same way in respect of release and licence conditions as other prisoners.
The only other sections with a definite implementation date are the following sections, all of which will come into force two months after royal assent, presumably 22 March 2026:
- Suspended sentences
1 Presumption of suspended sentence order for sentences of 12 months or less
2 Custodial sentences that may be suspended
- Income reduction order
3 Income reduction orders
- Purposes of sentencing
4 Purposes of sentencing
- Deferment of sentence
5 Date to which passing of sentence may be deferred
- Offenders of particular concern
7 Special custodial sentence for certain offenders of particular concern: England and Wales
8 Sentence with fixed licence period: Scotland
9 Sentence with fixed licence period: Northern Ireland
- Whole life order: murder of police, prison or probation officer
11 Whole life order: murder of police, prison or probation officer
- Sentencing Council for England and Wales
19 Sentencing Council business plan
20 Sentencing guidelines
- Parole Board rules
40 Rules about the proceedings of the Parole Board
- Repatriated prisoners
41 Application of provisions about release etc to certain repatriated prisoners
- Sentences of imprisonment or detention for public protection
43 Powers of High Court on referral
As yet there is no implementation date for the provisions affecting the early release of prisoners (although this is expected to occur in the “Autumn”) or restricting recalls of certain fixed term prisoners to 56 days (although this is expected in the “coming months”).