*/
The ‘legislative tsunami’ triggered by Brexit is the ‘greatest challenge’ ever faced by our legislative processes, Lord Judge said.
Delivering the annual Bingham Lecture, Judge, who served as Lord Chief Justice between 2008 and 2013, bemoaned the ‘torrent’ of legislation generally, which he said is not properly scrutinised.
Spending increasing time in the House of Lords, he said, has changed the way he sees the legislative process. ‘The process of scrutiny, which provides the basis for Parliamentary control of the executive has... diminished, is diminishing, and ought to be increased’.
While Bills are getting longer, Judge said many are ‘not much more than intended political propaganda’. ‘Skeleton’ Bills, like the Education and Adoption Bill and Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill, he said, leave much of the detail to secondary legislation. While ‘Christmas Tree’ Bills, which have ‘grand’ and focused titles, are then ‘festooned with multiple miscellaneous’ and potentially controversial provisions that have no apparent connection with their titles, in the hope they will escape scrutiny.
Judge said: ‘During the last few years something like 3,000 typed pages of primary legislation have been produced annually, and in addition laws are made by some 12,000- 13,000 pages of delegated legislation.’
Legislative scrutiny, he said, is an essential ingredient of Parliamentary democracy. ‘The government should be held to account for its actions, and its policies, and consequentially for the laws it seeks to enact to implement its policies and legitimise its actions.’
The ‘legislative tsunami’ triggered by Brexit is the ‘greatest challenge’ ever faced by our legislative processes, Lord Judge said.
Delivering the annual Bingham Lecture, Judge, who served as Lord Chief Justice between 2008 and 2013, bemoaned the ‘torrent’ of legislation generally, which he said is not properly scrutinised.
Spending increasing time in the House of Lords, he said, has changed the way he sees the legislative process. ‘The process of scrutiny, which provides the basis for Parliamentary control of the executive has... diminished, is diminishing, and ought to be increased’.
While Bills are getting longer, Judge said many are ‘not much more than intended political propaganda’. ‘Skeleton’ Bills, like the Education and Adoption Bill and Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill, he said, leave much of the detail to secondary legislation. While ‘Christmas Tree’ Bills, which have ‘grand’ and focused titles, are then ‘festooned with multiple miscellaneous’ and potentially controversial provisions that have no apparent connection with their titles, in the hope they will escape scrutiny.
Judge said: ‘During the last few years something like 3,000 typed pages of primary legislation have been produced annually, and in addition laws are made by some 12,000- 13,000 pages of delegated legislation.’
Legislative scrutiny, he said, is an essential ingredient of Parliamentary democracy. ‘The government should be held to account for its actions, and its policies, and consequentially for the laws it seeks to enact to implement its policies and legitimise its actions.’
The new Bar Council earnings report presents a collective challenge for the self-employed Bar, remote hearings are changing and Bar Conference is back next month
Launch of the Institute of Neurotechnology and Law
Paul Magrath of ICLR recalls the chequered history of law reporting prior to the 1865 establishment of a Council of Law Reporting
Leading drug, alcohol and DNA testing laboratory, AlphaBiolabs, has made a £500 donation to North West charity Child Concern as part of its Giving Back campaign
Gail Evans, Technical Trainer at AlphaBiolabs, examines the latest trends in illicit drug use as seen in the laboratory, from designer drugs to ‘unexpected’ substances in a donor’s sample
Louise Crush explores the value you can measure in monetary terms alongside the many non-tangible benefits to working with a financial adviser
By Professor Jo Delahunty KC, Kate Brunner KC and Dr Ann Olivarius KC (Hon) OBE
The ‘non-party political’ employment silk advising Labour talks to Stephanie Hayward about employer failure to tackle workplace sexual harassment and the urgent need to reinvent whistleblowing culture
From Parliamentary standards to barrister standards – Kathryn Stone OBE, Chair of the Bar’s regulator, talks to Anthony Inglese CB about roots, respect and reviews
Jessica Foster reviews State Trials and Error – fundraising and showcasing the musical and theatrical talent within the legal profession
Alex Goodman KC on why our electoral laws need an urgent upgrade – they were not designed to address the corruption of popular opinion by AI and deepfakes