The Sentencing Council is consulting on a new guideline for some of the most commonly prosecuted firearms offences. At the moment, guidance is to be found only in case law, and this can lead to a challenging sentencing exercise. The purpose of the guideline is to provide consistency in sentencing, and the impact assessment does not suggest that any general increase in sentences is to be expected, although in many instances the Sentencing Council was met with a weak evidence b

With many offences, the punishment may vary according to the context of the criminality.  By way of example, violence in a domestic context will generally be treated more harshly than the same level of harm against a stranger (absent other aggravating features). The same is true of drugs offending, and particularly when it involves prisons and prisoners. A failure to understand this fundamental point may result in clients being given incorrect advice concerning likely sentenc