Lords praise for murdered prison officer's family

The family of an ex-prison officer murdered by a former inmate have been praised in the House of Lords for "their dignified and determined" campaign for a law change aimed at deterring revenge attacks.

Lenny Scott was shot dead outside a gym in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, by armed robber Elias Morgan who Scott had previously seized an illicit phone from at HMP Altcourse in Merseyside.

The killing in 2024 sparked demands to extend whole life sentences to those who murder former, as well as existing, prison, probation and police officers.

Prisons Minister Lord James Timpson paid tribute to the Scott family as the Sentencing Bill passed its third reading in the Lords.

Morgan did not face a whole life order as his victim had left the prison service by the time of the murder, but was sentenced to a minimum of 45 years behind bars.

Those who kill an on-duty prison or police officer can currently expect the most severe prison sentence, where they spend the rest of their life in jail.

Under proposals in the Sentencing Bill, currently going through Parliament, this will be extended to cover offenders who murder off-duty or former officers because of their job.

Probation officers will also be brought within the scope of the widened sentence.

During a Lords debate, Lord Timpson said whole life orders would also be extended to cover "former police, prison and probation officers where they are murdered in connection with their duties, even if it occurs while they are off duty or after they have left the service".

He added: "I pause here to again pay tribute to former prison custody officer Lenny Scott, as well as his family... for their dignified and determined advocacy on his behalf."

The wider Sentencing Bill aims to ease the crisis in prison places by providing for the early release of criminals under enhanced supervision, curbing the use of short jail terms and increasing community punishments.

It will now return to the Commons for MPs to consider revisions made by peers.

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