Criminals who skip sentencing will face solitary confinement or lose social visits

• Criminals who refuse to attend their own sentencing hearings will face tougher sanctions including solitary confinement or losing social visits, under measures due to come into effect next year. • The rules build on an existing law that orders offenders to attend sentencing or face a fine or up to two more years in jail for contempt of court. • The Ministry of Justice acknowledged that longer jail time alone is unlikely to deter those already behind bars. • Prisons Minister Catherine McKinnell said criminals should not be able to pick and choose when they face justice, calling refusal to...