The wife of a Tory councillor, who was jailed for inciting racial hatred on X following the Southport stabbings, should be "released immediately", a former Prime Minister has said.
Lucy Connolly, who is married to West Northamptonshire Conservative councillor Raymond Connolly, was jailed for 31 months.
The childminder called for "mass deportation" in the wake of a stabbing that killed three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport.
Connolly, 42, wrote on social media: "Mass deportation now, set fire to all f****** hotels full of the b******* for all I care…"
She continued: "If that makes me racist, so be it."
It has since been reported that the mother has been denied temporary release.
Former PM Liz Truss told the Telegraph: "Lucy Connolly should be released immediately and reunited with her family.
"The severity of her sentence is completely unjustifiable and a shocking example of two-tier justice which now prevails in Britain.
"Tony Blair’s constitutional vandalism in the mid-2000s abolished judicial accountability. We are now suffering the consequences of a system that has been captured by leftist ideology.
"Judicial appointments should be the responsibility of a democratically accountable Lord Chancellor – as they were prior to 2005."
Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman acknowledged that Connolly's remarks were "tasteless" but said her sentence seemed excessive.
"Lucy Connolly is a victim of a politicised two-tier justice system in Starmer’s Britain. She should not be in prison," she said.
"Yes, her comments were crass, tasteless and vile, and I disagree with them. Lucy deleted them quickly and apologised for her error of judgment.
"That is why the sentence of 31 months' custody for her first-time offence seems excessive.
"She has deliberately been made an example of to intimidate others into silence. Orwell was out by 40 years. Otherwise, he was spot on."
It comes after documents seen by the paper suggested Connolly had not been granted leave due to concerns over public and media interest in her case instead of her not meeting criteria.
Connolly is understood to have stated in her appeal that there is a deterioration in her daughter's school behaviour and her husband, who is suffering from bone marrow failure, is being put under added stress.
The 42-year-old has been eligible for release on temporary licence since November.
A prison service spokesman said: "Decisions on release on temporary licence and home detention curfew are made following uncompromising risk assessments to prioritise public safety.
"These are discretionary schemes, and each case is rigorously scrutinised, considering the severity of the offence, the prisoner’s conduct and the potential impact on victims and the community."