Criminal Justice Act 2003

246 Power to release prisoners on licence before required to do so

(1) Subject to subsections (2) to (4), the Secretary of State may—

(a) release on licence under this section a fixed-term prisoner, other than an intermittent custody prisoner, at any time during the period of 135 days ending with the day on which the prisoner will have served the requisite custodial period, and

(b) release on licence under this section an intermittent custody prisoner when 135 or less of the required custodial days remain to be served.

(2) Subsection (1)(a) does not apply in relation to a prisoner unless—

(a) the length of the requisite custodial period is at least 6 weeks,

(b) he has served—

(i) at least 4 weeks of his sentence, and

(ii) at least one-half of the requisite custodial period.

(3) Subsection (1)(b) does not apply in relation to a prisoner unless—

(a) the number of required custodial days is at least 42, and

(b) the prisoner has served—

(i) at least 28 of those days, and

(ii) at least one-half of the total number of those days.

(4) Subsection (1) does not apply where—

(a) the sentence is imposed under section 227 or 228,

(b) the sentence is for an offence under section 1 of the Prisoners (Return to Custody) Act 1995 (c. 16),

(c) the prisoner is subject to a hospital order, hospital direction or transfer direction under section 37, 45A or 47 of the Mental Health Act 1983 (c. 20),

(d) the sentence was imposed by virtue of paragraph 9(1)(b) or (c) or 10(1)(b) or (c) of Schedule 8 in a case where the prisoner has failed to comply with a curfew requirement of a community order,

(e) the prisoner is subject to the notification requirements of Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (c. 42),

(f) the prisoner is liable to removal from the United Kingdom,

(g) the prisoner has been released on licence under this section during the currency of the sentence, and has been recalled to prison under section 255(1)(a),

(h) the prisoner has been released on licence under section 248 during the currency of the sentence, and has been recalled to prison under section 254, or

(i) in the case of a prisoner to whom a direction under section 240 relates, the interval between the date on which the sentence was passed and the date on which the prisoner will have served the requisite custodial period is less than 14 days or, where the sentence is one of intermittent custody, the number of the required custodial days remaining to be served is less than 14.

(5) The Secretary of State may by order—

(a) amend the number of days for the time being specified in subsection (1) (a) or (b), (3) or (4)(i),

(b) amend the number of weeks for the time being specified in subsection (2)(a) or (b)(i), and

(c) amend the fraction for the time being specified in subsection (2)(b)(ii) or (3)(b)(ii).

(6) In this section—

• “the required custodial days”, in relation to an intermittent custody prisoner, means—

  (a)

  the number of custodial days specified under section 183, or

  (b)

  in the case of two or more sentences of intermittent custody, the aggregate of the numbers so specified;

• “the requisite custodial period” in relation to a person serving any sentence other than a sentence of intermittent custody, has the meaning given by paragraph (a), (b) or (d) of section 244(3);

• “sentence of intermittent custody” means a sentence to which an intermittent custody order relates.