The Sentencing Advisory Panel has today published a proposal that the Court of Appeal should review its sentencing guidelines on alcohol and tobacco smuggling.

In its advice to the Court of Appeal, the Panel recognises that evasion of duty on alcohol and tobacco costs the taxpayer a substantial amount in lost revenue. It recommends substantial prison sentences, up to the maximum of 7 years, for professional smugglers who oversee the operation of large, organised gangs.

For small-scale offenders, on the other hand, the Panel suggests that a fine or community sentence will normally be more appropriate, bearing in mind that smuggling is a non-violent, non-sexual offence with no direct personal victim. This follows existing guidance from the Court of Appeal that prison is not necessarily the only appropriate form of punishment for economic or financially motivated offences.

The Panel also recommends the use of compensation orders, confiscation orders and deprivation orders to ensure that smugglers do not benefit financially from their activities.

Notes for editors

1. The Sentencing Advisory Panel is an independent advisory and consultative body constituted under sections 80 and 81 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. The Panel is sponsored by the Home Office and the Department for Constitutional Affairs. It started work on 1 July 1999. Its function is to provide fully researched, objective advice to the Court of Appeal to assist the Court when it frames or revises sentencing guidelines.
2. The maximum penalty for fraudulent evasion of duty, under section 170 of the Customs & Excise Management Act 1979, is 7 years' imprisonment on indictment, or an unlimited fine. The maximum penalty on summary conviction is a fine of the prescribed sum or of three times the value of the goods, whichever is the greater, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, or both. The offences covered by section 170 include the importation and exportation of prohibited and restricted substances (including classified drugs) as well as the evasion of duty on any goods on which it is payable. In its proposal to the Court of Appeal, the Sentencing Advisory Panel is solely concerned with the appropriate penalty for offences involving the fraudulent evasion of duty on alcohol or tobacco.
3. UK citizens returning from abroad are legally entitled to import as much alcohol and tobacco as they want for their own use. Last year the Government revised the 'indicative levels' which serve as a guide to travellers and Customs officials when questions arise about whether goods are imported for personal use. (See HM Customs and Excise news release 84/02). Importation of any quantity of alcohol or tobacco for resale is an offence.
4. The Court of Appeal has issued guidance on the appropriate sentences for offences involving alcohol or tobacco smuggling, in the cases of Ollerenshaw [1999] 1 Cr App R (S) 65, and Dosanjh [1999] 1 Cr App R (S) 107. In the case of Kefford [2002] 2 Cr App R (S) 495, the Court of Appeal reminded sentencers, in the context of the growth in the prison population, that offenders should not be sent to prison unnecessarily, or for longer than necessary. In relation to economic crimes, the Court pointed out that prison was 'not necessarily the only appropriate form of punishment'.
5. The Sentencing Advisory Panel published its fourth annual report on 25 June 2003. Since 1 April 2002, the Court of Appeal has issued guidelines, based on the Panel's advice, on: minimum terms in murder cases; offences involving offensive weapons; offences involving child pornography; rape; domestic burglary; and causing death by dangerous driving.
6. The Panel has recently completed a consultation exercise on sentencing guidelines for robbery.
7. Under the Criminal Justice Bill which is currently before Parliament, a new Sentencing Guidelines Council will be established to take over responsibility for issuing sentencing guidelines. Once the Bill is in force the Sentencing Advisory Panel will submit its advice to the Council rather than to the Court of Appeal. The Panel will be able to offer advice on general sentencing principles as well as specific offences.
8. Copies of the Panel's advice on alcohol and tobacco smuggling may be obtained from: Gareth Sweny, Sentencing Advisory Panel, Room G11, Allington Towers, 19 Allington Street, London SW1E 5EB (telephone 020 7035 5158; e-mail sap-secretariat@beeb.net). The advice is also available on the Panel's website: http://www.sentencing-advisory-panel.gov.uk