Where a sentencing judge assesses the objective seriousness of co-offenders' conduct at substantially the same level, a significant difference in starting points must be reasonably explained by differences in the subjective cases; the fact that one offender was higher in an organisational hierarchy does not alone justify a materially higher starting point where the judge has found the objective seriousness to be comparable. A co-offender's terminal illness (here, cystic fibrosis) can reasonably explain a lower starting point for that co-offender, where the sentencing judge has made specific findings about the onerous nature of imprisonment for that person.
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