Sentencing Bill Committee: New Clause 9

What happened: The House of Commons voted on 21 October 2025 on New Clause 9, an opposition amendment to the Sentencing Bill at committee stage. The amendment was defeated by 317 votes to 104. The government opposed the clause, and its majority in the Commons was sufficient to block it.

Why it matters: The Sentencing Bill is the government's vehicle for reforming how custodial sentences are handed down and served, alongside broader changes to the prison system. New Clause 9 sought to modify or constrain elements of that framework. Its defeat means the government's preferred approach to sentencing and prison reform proceeds without the changes the amendment's supporters argued for, keeping policy on the trajectory ministers have set out.

The politics: The vote divided largely along party lines. All 277 Labour MPs and 26 Labour and Co-operative members who voted came down against the clause, while 90 Conservatives voted for it, alongside the five Democratic Unionist Party members, four Reform UK members, and both the Traditional Unionist Voice and Ulster Unionist Party representatives. Notably, four Green MPs and all four Plaid Cymru members voted with the government against the amendment, while five Independents backed it and seven voted no. The result is consistent with the pattern seen at the Sentencing Bill's later Report Stage on 29 October 2025, where a series of further opposition new clauses were also defeated by comparable margins.