By GB News (Politics) | Created at 2025-03-07 08:15:47 | Updated at 2025-03-09 05:14:36
1 day ago
The sentencing guidelines at the centre of a "two-tier justice" row were based on a report written by David Lammy, it has emerged.
New guidance issued by the Sentencing Council, coming in on April 1, tells judges to consider factors like ethnicity and religion in a pre-sentencing background report when deciding convicted criminals' fates.
The council said its new guidance was influenced by several pieces of research - including a 2017 review by Lammy, a new report by The Times has revealed.
The future Foreign Secretary found "widespread" racial discrimination in the criminal justice system, and put forward changes to improve outcomes for "black, Asian and minority ethnic" offenders.
In his review, Lammy called for more scrutiny of sentencing decisions - and said judges must be equipped with more information about offenders' backgrounds.
The Tottenham MP also urged for more use of pre-sentence reports - which are compiled by the Probation Service to give judges extra information about offenders' character and circumstances.
Lammy wrote: "These reports 'assist the court in determining the most suitable method of dealing with an offender' and may be particularly important for shedding light on individuals from backgrounds unfamiliar to the judge.
"This is vital considering the gap between the difference in backgrounds, both in social class and ethnicity, between the magistrates, judges and many of those offenders who come before them."
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has vowed to overrule the Sentencing Council if it fails to reverse the guidelines "as soon as possible", and has requested an urgent meeting to discuss the controversy.
And her shadow counterpart Robert Jenrick has kicked off legal proceedings in an attempt to axe the advice through a judicial review - calling the guidelines "anti-white and anti-Christian".
He later added: "Labour's fingerprints are all over this two-tier sentencing guidance. Lammy's report failed to establish conclusive evidence of direct discrimination in sentencing decisions. Now it's being used to justify abandoning the foundational principle of equal treatment under the law."
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Lowe and Philp clash over damning migrant data following GB News exclusive - 'You could have put a stop to this madness!'
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp and Reform UK's Rupert Lowe have butted heads this morning over damning migration figures revealed by GB News.
A new report by the Centre for Migration Control shared with the People's Channel has revealed that first-generation migrants could make up 25 per cent of Britain's population by 2035 - which Philp has warned is "far too much".
The Shadow Home Secretary said on social media: "This is far too much. It will undermine social cohesion and put pressure on services. That's why we will introduce a binding, annual cap on visas given out, voted on by Parliament."
But as both Labour and Reform UK have been keen to point out, Britain's recent migration surge began under the former Tory Government - which Lowe again laid into today.
"If only we had a 'conservative' government for 14 years that could have put a stop to this madness, don't you think Chris?" he jabbed.
Jenkyns weighs into Reform UK 'rift' with staunch defence of Nigel Farage - 'He's the man to lead Britain!'
Reform UK's Dame Andrea Jenkyns has mounted a fierce defence of Nigel Farage following an unexpected rift between the party leader and MP Rupert Lowe.
The Greater Lincolnshire mayoral candidate said she does "not recognise what has been printed about Nigel" - and hailed the Reform boss as "incredibly supportive" in a message of support late last night.
"I only saw him a couple of days ago as we had a campaign meeting," the former Tory minister said.
"He listens to ideas and has amazing vision and belief in our country. He has decades of political experience and is, in my view, the man to lead Britain.
"The party is also professionalising, including support and training for all candidates, including council candidates. Reform UK is the party of the brave, who is standing up for the silent majority."
Starmer to go face-to-face with EU bosses after White House pours praise on 'encouraging' European 'stepping up'
Hegseth (centre) said it was 'very encouraging' to see France and Britain say they are prepared to take a leading role yesterday
GETTY
Sir Keir Starmer is set to "dial in" to a videocall with EU leaders, Turkish President Recep Erdogan and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau later today.
The Prime Minister, as part of his bid to ramp up a European push to defend Ukraine, will be in talks just a day after the bloc sanctioned a multi-billion-Euro military spending hike - and after Defence Secretary John Healey went to Washington DC for a high-stakes meeting with US counterpart Pete Hegseth.
Hegseth said it was "very encouraging" to see France and Britain say they are prepared to take a leading role.
He also said suggestions that the US had adopted a "pro-Russia" stance were "garbage" - and vowed that Donald Trump is "working with both sides in a way that only President Trump can".
Speaking to US network Newsmax after the meeting, Healey said Britain and Europe were on a "push for peace" in Ukraine.
"It's a lasting, secure peace that we all want to see. We've got a big role to play in Europe and we are determined to do that," he added.
First-generation migrants to make up 25% of Britain by 2035 as population boom takes UK to 73 million, report shows
Unprecedented levels of migration could lead to a population surge among first-generation migrants in the UK, a report exclusively shared with GB News has revealed.
The Centre for Migration Control, who conducted the report, found that the UK population will explode to over 73 million by 2035, with almost a quarter being first generation migrants.
The total number of first-generation migrants will be 18,318,530, roughly 24 per cent of the total population of the UK.
