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Mr. Chris Smith
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people serving life sentences, discretionary or mandatory, have tariffs of more than 20 years.
Mrs. Rumbold
There are some 150 life sentence prisoners whose cases will be, or have been, reviewed by the Parole Board for the first time after 17 years in custody, because the period considered necessary to mark the seriousness of their offences is more than 20 years.