A Longman direction will be adequate even where the trial judge uses the word 'comment' on one occasion, provided the direction as a whole makes clear it is a binding direction of law cast in mandatory terms. The direction need not explicitly refer to the lost opportunity to test the complainant's credibility if that proposition is implicitly conveyed through references to lost opportunities to investigate matters bearing on credibility. There is no established tariff for child sexual offences in Western Australia, and comparison with individual sentences in other cases will seldom demonstrate error.
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