APPOINTMENTS TO SENTENCING ADVISORY PANEL

1 Aug 2005 10:45 AM

The Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, today announced that after consultation with the Home Secretary and the Lord Chief Justice, he has appointed HH Judge Anthony Ansell, HH Judge Phillip Clegg, Mrs Joanna Crowley and Mr Amritlal Devani to be members of the Sentencing Advisory Panel. These appointments fill the vacancies created by the retirement of Lord Chan, HH Sir Rhys Davies and Judge Peter Jones.

The new members formally took up their posts on 1 July 2005. Their term of appointment is until 30 June 2008.

Notes to Editors

1. The Sentencing Advisory Panel is an independent advisory and consultative body now constituted under sections 169 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. It first started work on 1 July 1999 when its function was to provide fully researched, objective advice to the Court of Appeal to assist the Court when it framed or revised sentencing guidelines. It now performs a similar function for the Sentencing Guidelines Council. The Chair is Professor Martin Wasik.

2. The panel comprises of fifteen members, including the chair, and the new members.

3. Anthony Ansell was a Barrister for 10 years then a Solicitor for a further 15 before being appointed to the Bench. During this time he was involved with the Finchley Law Centre and also volunteered for the Citizens Advice Bureau. He is currently a Circuit Judge in London. He has been a Judge for nearly 10 years covering Criminal Family Civil and Employment Appeals. He is a syndicate leader for the Judicial Studies Board, currently on Family law issues, and previously to Human Rights and Civil law. A life-long supporter of Chelsea Football club his other interests include opera and travel. He has two children.

4. Phillip Clegg has worked in the field of Criminal Law since 1966. After being appointed as Circuit Judge in 1987, his distinguished career culminated in 1996 when he was promoted to Resident Judge of Basildon Crown Court.

5. Joanna Crowley (nee Joanna Wallace) is 39 and has been the Chief Executive of The Christie NHS Trust since October 2000 - she will be leaving in September 2005. Before this she was Chief Executive of St Helens and Knowsley Health Authority. She joined the NHS in 1995 as a Director at East Cheshire NHS Trust. For the previous 6 years she lived in the USA, studying for an MBA at the University of California at Berkeley and working for Kaiser Permanente Northern California in a range of medical services planning roles. She has a degree in Architecture from University College London. She is married with a three-year-old daughter and enjoys running and botanical illustration.

6. Amritlal Devani has worked in the public and voluntary sectors for 35 years. He has a particular interest in Equality and Diversity issues. He was Executive Director for the Racial Equality Council between 1993 and 2004. Prior to this he worked as an Asian Development Officer for the Society for the Blind. He is also a Race Relations Advisor for the Home Office. He has been an Associate Member of the General Medical Council since 2000. He also likes to keep fit and does voluntary work with people with disabilities.

www.dca.gov.uk

ENDS