The creation of a Supreme Court of the United Kingdom will not alter the behaviour of judges, a parliamentary group has been told.
Lord Bingham of Cornhill, the former senior Law Lord who facilitated the 2005 Constitutional Reform Act which created the revolutionary Supreme Court, told a packed APPG meeting on constitutional reform “I do not think the behaviour of judges will alter.”
He dismissed the view held by many of his colleagues that judges would suddenly get “a rush of blood to the head” and assert their independence.
The crossbencher argued that they have been far from “docile” in recent years. They were not now, he said, “being accommodated as they wish.”
He predicated that while there would be no significant change in function, there would be a change in perception "for the better.”
And he said that there would be procedural changes; a trend towards giving single judgements; and justices will become conscious of being more visible.
Henry Bellingham MP outlined his fears over the Supreme Court. Political pressure, he put it to Lord Bingham, would be placed upon Supreme Court judges to produce favourable outcomes in return for peerage appointments
The shadow justice minister, also seized on the political theme of the day: cuts. He questioned the validity of paying out £12.5m in running costs and a number of high paid officials.
“Law is the bedrock of our society” and the judiciary “a pillar of the constitution” worth paying for, an unswayed Bingham replied. He highlighted that the cost is “very small” in comparison to other budgets.
Lord Bingham defended the Act by stating that it has plenty of provisions to protect against political interference.
An attendee from the Law Society asked Bingham how he thought the role of presidency of the Supreme Court would develop- a powerful position or a case of first among equals?
Bingham said this would depend on the president’s relationship with the other justices, although he predicted that the office holder “will become a bigger figure than predecessors”.
Positive cultural benefits are expected to accompany the new Supreme Court. This issue was raised by a member of the Bar Council who suggested that it would be beneficial for society to see the judges live and televised.
Lord Bingham disagreed that this was desirable, on the grounds that judicial procedures can often be long and boring, but said it was certainly possible.
