Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Government and the Courts

Tuesday 29 June 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • John Nicolson asked about recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on reviewing the relationship between Government and the courts.
  • The Minister responded by referring to pies at HMP Berwyn, apparently off-topic.
  • The Minister stated that the Government is publishing all information consistent with public duty and collective Cabinet responsibility.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 John Nicolson SNP
Justice & Courts Parliamentary Procedure
Context

No specific background event or incident is provided. The question focuses on the relationship between the Government and the courts.

Question

What recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on plans to review the relationship between Government and the courts.

Answer from Robert Buckland

Forgive me, Mr Speaker, I was thinking about the pies at HMP Berwyn.

Not addressed: The question on recent discussions regarding the review of the relationship between the Government and the courts was completely avoided.

How: Changed Subject

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Q2 John Nicolson SNP
Justice & Courts Parliamentary Procedure
Context

The Public Law Project requested a breakdown of Government spending on judicial review and criticized the information received as inadequate.

Question

The Public Law Project requested a breakdown of Government spending on judicial review, but it said that the information received was “barely a fraction of what should have been published. It is not detailed or clear enough to give any meaningful insight as to how judicial review impacts Government departments”. Why are the Government so reluctant to publish everything requested?

Answer from Robert Buckland

The hon. Gentleman has expressed the view of one contributor to the consultation. I would argue on the contrary—that, indeed, we are publishing everything, consistent with our wider public duty and with our duty to maintain collective Cabinet responsibility. The current consultation has been ongoing. We are due to publish a response to that ahead of any potential legislation. That will all be done. Of course, any proposals will have the fullest scrutiny from him and other right hon. and hon. Members in due course.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The reluctance to fully disclose information about Government spending on judicial review was not directly addressed.

How: Hedging Language, Procedural Announcements

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