Child rapists would be jailed for life if Reform UK wins the next election, its head of policy has said.
Under plans announced by Zia Yusuf on Saturday, the party would introduce mandatory whole-life orders for offenders convicted of the crime, making them ineligible for parole, as part of a crackdown on grooming gangs.
Reform said its intention was for “mandatory minimums to apply to historic child sexual abuse to ensure that heinous historic crimes are also sentenced proportionally”.
There were 677 convictions for rape of children under the age of 16 in 2024, according to Ministry of Justice data. These figures relate to the number of convictions rather than the number of people convicted.
Life sentences can be given to child rapists at a judge’s discretion under existing rules, with an offence range of six to 19 years for offences against children under 13.
Reform said the policy had been “factored in” to its plans to free up prison capacity by deporting foreign criminals to their country of origin and building “Nightingale prisons”.
Yusuf said: “For too long, Conservative and Labour governments have failed to protect our children.
“A Reform government will introduce mandatory minimum life sentences for those who rape children. It is shameful that this is not already the law.
“It is a stain on our national conscience that grooming gangs were allowed to operate for years with impunity, and in many cases still do. Under Conservative governments, the average sentence for the rape of a child under 13 fell to as little as nine years.
“Some grooming gang child rapists have received sentences as low as four years. Under Labour, violent offenders are now being released early from prison.”
Whole-life orders differ from standard life sentences, whereby a minimum term is served before parole, and are given in cases where the crime was deemed so serious that the offender should never be released from prison.
According to the Sentencing Council, there were 70 whole-life prisoners as of March 2025 with recent examples including child serial killer Lucy Letby in 2023, Sarah Everard’s murderer Wayne Couzens in 2021, and Ali Harbi Ali, who murdered MP Sir David Amess in Southend in 2021.
A government spokesperson said: “While sentencing sits with the independent judiciary, judges can and do hand down long terms, including life sentences, for these sickening criminals.
“Recognising the national emergency violence against women and girls has become, this government is delivering the biggest overhaul of child protection measures in decades.
“We are creating a clear legal duty to treat grooming as an explicit aggravating factor in sentencing for child sexual offences whenever it plays a part.
“The Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs is now under way, with a chair appointed and progress being made toward securing answers for victims and survivors.”
In the UK, the NSPCC offers support to children on 0800 1111, and adults concerned about a child on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adult survivors on 0808 801 0331. In the US, call or text the Childhelp abuse hotline on 800-422-4453. In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800, or Bravehearts on 1800 272 831, and adult survivors can contact Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International
