Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Keen of Elie on 22 November (HL3029), where in the <i>Cabinet Manual </i>criteria or guidance are given about how the Lord Chancellor and other Ministers should perform their duty under section 3 of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 to uphold the independence of the judiciary.

Paragraph 16 of the introduction and Chapter 6 of the Cabinet Manual make clear that it is a long-established constitutional principle that the judiciary is independent of both the government of the day and Parliament. This is to ensure the even-handed administration of justice.