Victorian Numbered Acts Victorian Numbered Acts(1) After section 27(1) of the Sentencing Act 1991 insert —
"(1A) In considering whether it is desirable in the circumstances to make an order suspending a sentence of imprisonment, a court must have regard to—
(a) the need, considering the nature of the offence, its impact on any victim of the offence and any injury, loss or damage resulting directly from the offence, to ensure that the sentence—
(i) adequately manifests the denunciation by the court of the type of conduct in which the offender engaged; and
(ii) adequately deters the offender or other persons from committing offences of the same or a similar character; and
(iii) reflects the gravity of the offence; and
(b) any previous suspended sentence of imprisonment imposed on the offender and whether the offender breached the order suspending that sentence; and
(c) without limiting paragraph (b), whether the offence was committed during the operational period of a suspended sentence of imprisonment; and
(d) the degree of risk of the offender committing another offence punishable by imprisonment during the operational period of the sentence, if it were to be suspended.
(1B) Nothing in sub-section (1A) limits or affects Part 2.".
(2) After section 27(2A) of the Sentencing Act 1991 insert —
"(2B) Despite sub-section (1), a court must not make an order suspending the whole of a sentence of imprisonment imposed on an offender for a serious offence unless it is satisfied, after having had regard to the factors specified in sub-section (1A), that making such an order is—
(a) appropriate because of the existence of exceptional circumstances; and
(b) in the interests of justice.
(2C) If a court makes an order of a kind referred to in sub-section (2B), it must, at the time of imposing the sentence, announce in open court its reasons for so doing and cause those reasons to be noted in the records of the court.".