header-logo header-logo

Election blues

04 May 2017 / Dr Jon Robins
Issue: 7744 / Categories: Opinion
printer mail-detail
nlj_7744_robins

Jon Robins considers the impact of the snap General Election on the UK justice system

In the countdown to the Brexit election, justice issues are likely to have even less of a look in than recent elections. That’s not to say that the snap poll is not already having an impact on lawyers and indeed non-lawyers.

Ta-ra to Truss?

Newspapers on the right have been rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of an early exit for our third non-lawyer lord chancellor after Chris Grayling and Michael Gove. Earlier last month the Daily Telegraph, before the election announcement, claimed that ‘senior government sources’ reported that cabinet ministers were piling on the pressure on Theresa May to strip Liz Truss of her role as Lord Chancellor.

A landslide win for the Conservatives on 8 June sharply increases the odds of that happening. According to The Sun, the PM is presently ‘sharpening her blade’ in anticipation of a post-election reshuffle.

Lord Thomas last month castigated Truss for her failure to stand up for the

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Gilson Gray—Paul Madden

Gilson Gray—Paul Madden

Partner appointed to head international insolvency and dispute resolution for England

Brachers—Gill Turner Tucker

Brachers—Gill Turner Tucker

Kent firm expands regional footprint through strategic acquisition

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—William Charles

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—William Charles

Financial disputes and investigations specialist joins as partner in London

NEWS
Ministers’ proposals to raise funds by seizing interest on lawyers’ client account schemes could ‘cause firms to close’, solicitors have warned
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not done enough to protect the future sustainability of the legal aid market, MPs have warned
Writing in NLJ this week, NLJ columnist Dominic Regan surveys a landscape marked by leapfrog appeals, costs skirmishes and notable retirements. With an appeal in Mazur due to be heard next month, Regan notes that uncertainties remain over who will intervene, and hopes for the involvement of the Lady Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls in deciding the all-important outcome
After the Southport murders and the misinformation that followed, contempt of court law has come under intense scrutiny. In this week's NLJ, Lawrence McNamara and Lauren Schaefer of the Law Commission unpack proposals aimed at restoring clarity without sacrificing fair trial rights
The latest Home Office figures confirm that stop and search remains both controversial and diminished. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort University analyses data showing historically low use of s 1 PACE powers, with drugs searches dominating what remains
back-to-top-scroll