The guideline judgment in R v Thomson and Houlton does not create an almost automatic entitlement to a 25% discount for an early guilty plea; the discount remains in the sentencing judge's discretion. Where an offender remains silent hoping offences will not be discovered, no credit for delay is warranted. The theoretical question of whether prior convictions can aggravate the objective seriousness of an offence under s 21A(2)(d), as opposed to merely affecting the appropriate sentence, remains unresolved and would require a five-judge bench to determine.
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