A man who committed two robberies within seven hours has had his sentence increased following an intervention by the Solicitor General, Rt Hon Michael Ellis QC MP.

On 30th November 2019, Matthew Holland, aged 31, spent the afternoon drinking and gambling in an amusement arcade in Boston. After running out of money, he entered a public house in Boston, produced a large kitchen knife and told a bartender to empty the till. He left with nearly £500 in cash.

Holland subsequently went back to the same amusement arcade and gambled away the proceeds of the robbery.

In the early hours of the next morning, Holland committed his second robbery. He entered a petrol station with a meat clever and asked the cashier to hand over cash and other goods. Holland left with nearly £3500 worth of goods.

On 17 January 2020, Holland was sentenced to 2 years’ imprisonment suspended for 2 years at Lincoln Crown Court. Following a referral to the Court of Appeal by the Solicitor General, the sentence was found to be unduly lenient and has been increased to a sentence of 3 years and 9 months’ imprisonment.

After the hearing the Solicitor General said:

“Holland’s reckless and dangerous behaviour demonstrated a complete disregard for the law. His sentence has rightly been increased today at the Court of Appeal.”

A man who committed two robberies within seven hours has had his sentence increased following an intervention by the Solicitor General, Rt Hon Michael Ellis QC MP.

On 30th November 2019, Matthew Holland, aged 31, spent the afternoon drinking and gambling in an amusement arcade in Boston. After running out of money, he entered a public house in Boston, produced a large kitchen knife and told a bartender to empty the till. He left with nearly £500 in cash.

Holland subsequently went back to the same amusement arcade and gambled away the proceeds of the robbery.

In the early hours of the next morning, Holland committed his second robbery. He entered a petrol station with a meat clever and asked the cashier to hand over cash and other goods. Holland left with nearly £3500 worth of goods.

On 17 January 2020, Holland was sentenced to 2 years’ imprisonment suspended for 2 years at Lincoln Crown Court. Following a referral to the Court of Appeal by the Solicitor General, the sentence was found to be unduly lenient and has been increased to a sentence of 3 years and 9 months’ imprisonment.

After the hearing the Solicitor General said:

“Holland’s reckless and dangerous behaviour demonstrated a complete disregard for the law. His sentence has rightly been increased today at the Court of Appeal.”

In today’s 2020 Budget, the Chancellor confirmed that the Low Pay Commission (LPC) would be asked to make recommendations on the National Living Wage with a view to reaching a level of two-thirds of median earnings by 2024, provided economic conditions allow. The Government’s 2020 remit to the LPC has also been published today.

Responding to the Chancellor’s announcement, Bryan Sanderson, Chair of the LPC, said:

We welcome the confirmation of our 2020 remit in today’s Budget. The target for the National Living Wage to reach two-thirds of median earnings by 2024 is an ambitious one. We will need to listen closely to what employers and workers are telling us, and to very carefully assess the economic evidence in making our recommendations. The current concerns around the coronavirus only reinforce the importance of taking economic conditions into account.

We will be launching our written consultation in the coming days, to start the process of making recommendations on the 2021 minimum wage rates.

This is the remit for the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which the Chancellor sets out in a letter to the Governor of the Bank of England.

The Bank of England Act 1998 requires the Treasury to specify at least once every 12 months how price stability will be defined and the government’s economic policy objectives. The remit for the Monetary Policy Committee will continue to be issued alongside future Budgets.