Ethnic minority, transgender and female criminal suspects are set to be prioritised for bail under new Ministry of Justice guidelines.
In the latest twist to a growing "two-tier justice" row in Britain's courts, judges and magistrates have been told to "prioritise" women and minority groups because they may be at a "disproportionately higher risk" of being remanded into custody.
The guidance also tells judges to consider "trauma" suffered bysuspects whose relatives experienced racism, and cites "important historical events which may have had a greater impact on those from specific groups and cultures".
Judges are also told to factor in "additional support" and reports on such groups when deciding whether to free people on bail or detain them, according to guidance issued by the Ministry of Justice in January for courts and probation staff, The Telegraph reports.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood is set to take on the Sentencing Council this week through a 'surgical' emergency Bill
PA
And with just one day remaining until a highly controversial set of sentencing guidelines comes into effect, Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick has voiced his fury.
"Labour tried to hoodwink the public that they opposed 'two-tier justice', but this proves they are peddling it," he said.
"From bail through to sentencing, two-tier Keir is presiding over a justice system determined to treat ethnic minorities more leniently.
"Instead of equality before the law, the Justice Secretary's department believes in cultural relativism. This is a flagrant attack on the rule of law, and will put the British public at risk."
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'Labour tried to hoodwink the public that they opposed 'two-tier justice', but this proves they are peddling it,' Jenrick said
PAThe guidance, titled Probation Court Services Policy Framework, also advises officers on "diversity factors" in compiling sentencing reports to make sure there are "no references to diversity issues, which could stereotype certain groups".
It warns against "inappropriately linking people of a particular racial background to gang involvement, irrelevant reference to religion or belief, or referencing factors such as care-leaving status or educational difficulties without providing relevant context and evidence".
But the emergence of the bail guidelines comes as his Cabinet counterpart Shabana Mahmood gears up to take on the Sentencing Council - the arm's-length body behind the "two-tier" guidelines - having already had her pleas for change shot down by the quango.
Legislation is to be tabled this week to "surgically" remove the most contentious section of the new guidelines, a Government source told the BBC.
The new law will "be very focused on the specific guidelines and specifically the bits we don't like about them," the source said.
Despite a push to rush the emergency Bill through Parliament, a MoJ source admitted "there is no world in which those guidelines don't come into effect" as planned on Tuesday.
A spokesman for the MoJ said: "These guidelines were first brought in under the last Government. This Government will ensure equality in the courts. We are reviewing current policy that impacts the courts, and will be updating practices accordingly."
A source told The Telegraph the new bail guidance was a "consolidated" document, based on previous versions dating back to 2016.
