The government is supposed to introduce changes to parliamentary laws to override the new guidance of judges.
The Attorney General “considers all her options” when it comes to the Judgment Council, a minister from the Home Affairs Department suggests.
After denying requests from ethnic minorities to reconsider guidance on how to declare criminals, Shabana Mahmoud said “we are considering the best ways to make progress.”
The government will introduce changes to legislation in parliament to override the new guidance for judges. This states that prior text reports are usually required before handing out punishments to someone of a minority of ethnic, culture or faith, along with other groups, such as young adults, women, and pregnant women, between the ages of 18 and 25.
Critics fear that change can discriminate against people who do not fit into these groups.
The Minister of Exiled Eagle was asked by Times Radio whether the report of the preliminary text would be deleted for all those proposed by Congress.
“She spoke with the Judgment Council and she is now considering the best ways to advance in situations where we have found ourselves.”
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Asked if the Judgment Council should be removed entirely, she said, “I am sure she is considering all the options as to this particular Quanggo.”
The latest guidance from the council, scheduled to take effect on April 1, includes new principles that courts should follow when impose prisons and custody.
The former chief judges of England and Wales said that “the last thing everyone wants” was a politician involved in the decision of the individual sentences, but the judges did not want to set policies.
Thomas Lord of CWMGiedd told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” program:
“The last thing everyone wants is the politicians involved in the decisions of individual sentences.
“And the last thing a judge wants is to ultimately decide on criminal policy for the government.”
“Minister’s Surveillance”
The new bill, which is set to be introduced into Congress, must go through the usual parliamentary process of being scrutinized in both the House and House before it becomes law, but the Minister hopes this will be done quickly.
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrik said “guidelines” should be provided to judges and magistrates regarding the verdict, but also “some degree of ministerial oversight.”
Senior Tory, who was in the government when the guidelines were first approved, told Times Radio:
“And it is right for them to provide guidance and maintain it under continuous review.
“But it is also important that there is a degree of ministerial oversight beyond that.
“So, if they are troubled by policies and political decisions that are very important to the judicial system, ministers such as the Attorney General can intervene, as they did in this case.”
He criticized Mahmood over the weekend for acting “too late” in the ruling guidelines.
Jenrik recently sought to introduce a bill for private members in the Commons that would have prevented the Judgment Council from issuing guidelines without the Attorney General’s consent.
The bill sat on Friday and was denied a discussion of a second reading at Commons, and Jenrik slammed the government for blocking it.
Jack Straw, who was the Attorney General when the Judgment Council was established in 2010, supported Mahmoud’s guidelines to “take steps to correct errors.”
He told the Policy Exchange Think Tank: “It is clear that the government needs to take steps to correct the error.
“Given the support of mutual parties to resolve this, I hope this can be done soon, as shown in the position of Secretary of State Shadow Robert Jenrik.”
