The long-awaited final report of David Gauke’s sentencing review was published on 22nd May 2025. In this episode, Penelope and Rob are joined by Rachel Sylvester, political editor of The Observer, to discuss its contents.

From chemical castration to early release, the report covers a huge range of suggestions to reduce pressure on our prison system. But will it be enough to finally broker peace between the parties, the public, and the prisons?

Rachel Sylvester

Read more from The Times’ crime and justice commission, which Rachel chaired: https://www.thetimes.com/law/crime-justice-commission

Further resources:

Read the sentencing review final report: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-sentencing-review-final-report

Read Rob’s latest blog about the sentencing review: https://reformingprisons.blogspot.com/2025/05/a-good-try-but-can-it-be-converted.html

Transform Justice

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The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.