The Conservatives have announced they will abolish the independent body that advises courts on sentences in a bid to stop what it has called “two-tier justice”.
Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said that ministers, rather than the Sentencing Council, would be responsible for setting sentencing policy if the Tories return to power at the next election.
Speaking while the Conservative Party conference was under way in Manchester, Mr Jenrick branded the council “not fit for purpose”.
“Never again can the British people face the prospect of two-tier justice,” he continued.
“We are slipping into a two-tier nightmare under Keir Starmer. All too frequently the law is not applied equally. No more – every single person in this country must be treated exactly the same, regardless of their background.”
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The Sentencing Council, which sets out guidance for courts in England and Wales, found itself at the centre of controversy earlier this year after it advised judges to factor in the backgrounds of offenders as part of the sentencing process.
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The proposed guidelines – which never came into force as they were suspended – said courts should “normally consider” ordering a pre-sentence report (PSR) for criminals if they were from an ethnic, cultural minority or faith minority community, transgender, under the age of 25, pregnant or female.
PSRs are taken into account when considering a criminal’s sentence.
The council said at the time that the recommendation was aimed at reflecting disparities in sentencing outcomes.
According to the most recent government statistics, since 2018 white defendants are more likely to have a shorter jail sentence than any other ethnic group.
However, the Tories called it an example of “two-tier” justice, arguing it was biased against Christians and straight white men.
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Shabana Mahmood, the current home secretary who was justice secretary at the time, also expressed her “displeasure” at the body’s recommendations, arguing that “as someone who is from an ethnic minority background myself, I do not stand for any differential treatment before the law”.
Following the row, it was confirmed that the justice secretary – now David Lammy – will be given the power to veto any changes to sentencing guidelines proposed by the council.
It means the Sentencing Council will be unable to issue new guidelines without the explicit approval of the justice secretary or the lady chief justice, who is head of the judiciary.
But Mr Jenrick wants to go further by abolishing the council altogether.
“The public are sick of voting for tougher sentences and getting the opposite,” he said.
“So in future the justice secretary, accountable to parliament, will be responsible for setting sentencing policy. No longer will an unaccountable quango be able to subvert the will of the British people for criminals to be properly punished.”
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A Labour spokesperson said: “This is yet more rank hypocrisy from a Conservative Party that wrecked our justice system and left Labour to pick up the pieces.
“After 14 years of Tory neglect, our prisons were left bursting at the seams because they didn’t build enough prisons, our courts overwhelmed, and public confidence in the justice system was left shattered.
“The Conservatives backed the proposed changes to pre-sentencing reports when they were announced and did nothing to stop them when they were in government. Labour took action the moment we uncovered their mistake.
“This is just another cynical gimmick from Jenrick, a man who constantly undermines the independence of the judiciary just to further his own career.”
