The parity principle does not apply where a co-offender has not been charged. In sentencing for blackmail, while the total sentence may be within range, the structure of a partly suspended sentence (the proportion required to be served immediately) is independently reviewable for manifest excess. A sentence requiring two-thirds of a three-year term to be served immediately was manifestly excessive for a first-time prisoner convicted of blackmail involving threats but no physical violence.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 2 later cases that cite this judgment.