The Conservatives have pledged to abolish the Sentencing Council and give ministers the power to issue guidelines to courts in England and Wales.Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick will set out the plans that would put ministers in charge of sentencing policy, in a speech at the party’s conference.Jenrick will say the council is “not fit for purpose” and argue its guidelines have created a “two-tier nightmare”, with people treated differently by the courts.The announcement comes after a public dispute earlier in the year between the Sentencing Council and the government over pre-sentence reports for offenders from certain minority groups.In response to that row, the Labour government blocked updated guidance and reviewed the role of the Sentencing Council.In September, the government said it would change the law to stop the Sentencing Council issuing new guidelines to courts in England and Wales without the explicit approval of the justice secretary.The Sentencing Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament, would give the justice secretary veto powers over any new sentencing guidance.Last month, the then-Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said sentencing policy “must be set by parliamentarians, who answer to the people”.The Conservatives want to go further and get rid of the Sentencing Council altogether.The Sentencing Council is a non-departmental public body that sets out guidance for courts in England and Wales.In his speech, Jenrick will accuse the council of watering down sentences by recommending jail terms that fall short of the maximum allowe …
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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnThe Conservatives have pledged to abolish the Sentencing Council and give ministers the power to issue guidelines to courts in England and Wales.Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick will set out the plans that would put ministers in charge of sentencing policy, in a speech at the party’s conference.Jenrick will say the council is “not fit for purpose” and argue its guidelines have created a “two-tier nightmare”, with people treated differently by the courts.The announcement comes after a public dispute earlier in the year between the Sentencing Council and the government over pre-sentence reports for offenders from certain minority groups.In response to that row, the Labour government blocked updated guidance and reviewed the role of the Sentencing Council.In September, the government said it would change the law to stop the Sentencing Council issuing new guidelines to courts in England and Wales without the explicit approval of the justice secretary.The Sentencing Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament, would give the justice secretary veto powers over any new sentencing guidance.Last month, the then-Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said sentencing policy “must be set by parliamentarians, who answer to the people”.The Conservatives want to go further and get rid of the Sentencing Council altogether.The Sentencing Council is a non-departmental public body that sets out guidance for courts in England and Wales.In his speech, Jenrick will accuse the council of watering down sentences by recommending jail terms that fall short of the maximum allowe …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
