Members of the quango behind controversial "two-tier justice" rules previously praised the Black Lives Matter movement and Insulate Britain protesters, it has been revealed.
Under new guidelines drawn up by the Sentencing Council, judges are told they should "normally consider" issuing pre-sentence reports on ethnic minority offenders.
The guidance, set to come into force from April, has sparked fierce criticism from politicians who claim it creates a "two-tier" justice system.
Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman described the approach as a "total perversion of justice, equality and fairness".
Members had previously praised the campaign groups
PA
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick has vowed to legally challenge the guidance, claiming it enshrines "anti-white" and "anti-Christian" bias in the criminal justice system.
Beverley Thompson OBE, one of the advisers on the Sentencing Council, has previously claimed the British criminal justice system is "beleaguered" by "the over-representation of BAME people".
She suggested the system suffers from "systemic racism and racial inequality."
In a foreword to a Prison Reform Trust report in 2021, Thompson wrote: "Through the efforts of Black Lives Matter (BLM), organisations have clamoured to pledge their commitment to identify, address and to eradicate systemic racism and racial inequality."
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Beverley Thompson was one of those on the council
Sentencing Council
"The Black Lives Matter movement is important. It shines a light on the disparity of treatment of black people compared to other ethnicities," she stated.
Judge Stephen Leake, another council member, once told Insulate Britain protesters: "I have heard your voices. They have inspired me and personally I intend to do what I can to reduce my own impact on the planet."
Johanna Robinson, appointed to the council in 2023, has spoken about "real allyship" and appeared to participate in an "anti-racist" counter-demonstration during the summer riots following the Southport killings.
The guidelines were based partly on the 2017 Lammy Review, led by current Foreign Secretary David Lammy when Labour were in opposition.
The review found "widespread" racial discrimination in the criminal justice system and recommended greater use of pre-sentence reports.
Judge Stephen Leake, another council member, once told Insulate Britain protesters: "I have heard your voices. They have inspired me and personally I intend to do what I can to reduce my own impact on the planet"
Sentencing Council
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has threatened to overrule the Sentencing Council, writing to its chairman Lord Justice William Davis to express her "displeasure".
"I do not stand for differential treatment before the law like this," she stated. Mahmood has pledged to change the law through the Sentencing Bill "if necessary".
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said her party would back Mahmood if she changes the law.
The guidelines are set to come into force on April 1.
