Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reclaim powers from judges.

An independent judiciary is the cornerstone of our constitution and democracy, and the Government is rightly proud of our world-class judiciary. Judicial independence from the Executive and Parliament is a fundamental tenet of the rule of law. Under the separation of powers doctrine, a core function of Parliament is to make legislation which will then be interpreted and applied by the judiciary. It is vital that judges are able to make rulings on their merits in law alone.

We have no plans to alter the process for making judicial appointments. Our judges are selected following a rigorous, independent, merit-based process which is key to maintaining the quality, integrity and independence of our judiciary.