Bar Council responds to Lammy Review on racial bias in criminal justice system
updated on 11 September 2017
Following on from publication last week of the Lammy Report on racial bias in the British criminal justice system, the chair of the Bar Council’s Equality and Diversity and Social Mobility Committee has responded by saying that report makes an important contribution to the “urgent task of securing a fair and equal criminal justice system”.
Robin Allen QC, the committee’s chair, said that the “important and imaginative recommendations” contained within the report require “proper consideration”, and that criminal barristers in particular have a significant contribution to make to the debate.
He said: “We want our profession and the judiciary to reflect the diversity of the population it serves. As Lammy observes, we are making progress but it is slow. Improving diversity and supporting under-represented groups to enter the profession and progress into the judiciary is an important aspect of our work and something we devote considerable resources to.”
All his comments and details of some of the key recommendations are here.
