Minister to get power to overrule sentencing guidance after ‘two-tier justice’ row
The government will prevent the powers of the punishment council after the criminals from ethnic minorities have caused the charges of “two -layer justice”.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood will have to approve of all new directives published by the Council after intervening in preventing pre -sentence measures requiring pre -sentence reports while deciding on penalties for certain minority groups.
The guidelines were formulated by some of the highest level of legal figures in the UK and Wales in response to official figures showing that criminals from ethnic minorities are constantly taking longer sentences than white criminals.
Ms. Mahmood asked Robert Jenrick, the Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick, to rethink in the midst of discussions, including the charges of “two -layer justice”.
He said he would legally challenge the guidance on the reasons he put forward the “anti-white” and an anti-Christian ”prejudice in the Criminal Justice system.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch also asked Mahmood to change the law and said that the conservatives would “return it”.
After the Council refused to withdraw, Ms. Mahmood prevented the guidelines related to the emergency legislation after insisting that it was “a clear example of differential therapy, and took the risk of kadarma weakening the trust of a system of justice on the idea of equality before the law”.
This week, Mrs. Mahmood went further and announced a new “democratic lock” on her powers, which means they will need a clear approval to provide new punishment guidelines.
The approval of the Lady Chief Justice will also be required before new instructions are given.
The Council will also be a requirement for the annual business plan to get approval, but the Ministry of Justice insists that reforms do not interfere with the independence of judges in making judges’ punishment decisions.
Mahmood said, “Individual punishment decisions will always be the responsibility of the independent judiciary – and this is something I will defend in a decisive way,” he said.
“However, the policy should be determined by parliamentarians responding to the public.
“The government and the parliament have a legitimate role in determining the punishment framework.
The Prime Minister said that he was “very disappointed” after the conviction of the Council of the Council previously refused to review the guidance.
Sir Keir Starmer said that the government was not a “other option ,, but he came to the forefront to reverse the legislation.
In June, the Royal Circle Receiving Penalties (Pre -sentence reports) law prevents pre -sentence reports from selecting certain cohort for differential treatment based on personal characteristics.
Lord Justice Davis, President of the Council, can be understood by stating the evidence of disadvantages in the justice system and by evaluating the criminals only.
