Lawyers screw over Britain

And Sir Keir Starmer KC is one of them

I read the Times of London religiously. Over the last few weeks I have detected a ‘vibe shift.’ It has only just now dawned on the paper of record that there is this new fandangled thing called “judicial review.” Pray, explain this concept to me. Judicial review is where you can sue the government and therefore it makes it very difficult for them to get anything done.

There was Fraser ‘Britain has experienced an integration miracle’ Nelson who said, “Starmer must decide, is he politician or lawyer? Only by taking back the power given to judges will the PM have any hope of effecting change such as benefit reforms.”

Take power back from judges – how exactly will he do that? You think Sir Keir Starmer KC is going to repeal the Human Rights Act and the Equality Act and withdraw from the European Convention of Human Rights? His Attorney General has already said that this will never happen.

Emma Duncan was coming for the planning lawyers, “Time for Starmer to cut out the planning lawyers. Only by making big infrastructure projects immune from judicial review will we get things built.” Immune from judicial review. Come again? “It could create a fast track for big infrastructure projects approved by ministers to be confirmed by parliament, which would make them immune from judicial review.” What are you actually talking about? The only way to make something ‘immune from judicial review’ is by revoking the above mentioned acts. And that’s not going to happen.

There has even been a briefing war against the Attorney General Lord Hermer KC. “Lord Hermer KC’s legal guidance has led to ‘freeze on government.’ The attorney-general has been criticised by ministers as being too stringent and ‘finickity.” A finickity lawyer, you don’t say? Call the police! Next you will be telling me he has a strict eye for small details.

You mean the AG who is another human rights lawyer and built his career off judicial review has been giving out legal advice saying there will be a problem with anything the government wants to do that is worth doing? Shocked, I am, shocked. I need to sit down.

There are two reasons for this. First, the AG is a lawyer who in his previous life loved to put a freeze on former Conservative governments. Secondly, his advice is no doubt correct because he knows that there are an army of human rights lawyers out there (aka former colleagues of the Prime Minister) at the sets both Starmer and Hermer were at such as Doughty Street Chambers and Matrix Chambers that are just itching to issue a pre-trial letter to shut down the latest policy the elected government has dared to put forward in the interests of the electorate.

Take the latest attempt by Labour to do some governing. They will try to reign in the out of control benefits bill. The Times lead on Saturday was, “Long-term sick will need to look for jobs in benefits overhaul. Claimants could face cuts of £5,000 a year as government prepares for rows with backbenchers and campaigners over bringing down £65bn sickness bill.”

The word ‘will’ is hopeful, I can tell you. We are a long, long way from saying that the long term sick will need to job hunt. This is about as reliable as my son saying he will empty the dishwasher or Bill Clinton telling Hilary he will keep away from the interns. Even if Labour can get any law past their own MPs who will be screaming blue murder over cuts to benefits and get it past their own government lawyers, then it must get it past the mass of aforementioned human rights lawyers out there.

There will be some sad, sympathetic person somewhere who absolutely needs his benefits paid in full and they will instruct the lawyers. And as surely as night follows day that piece of legislation will be found to be in breach of the Human Rights Act and it’s back to the white board for the folks at the Treasury.

Or, take Labour’s plans to ‘go for growth’ which include as ever, plans for a third runway at Heathrow. That old chestnut that for some reason has never gotten off the ground (all puns intended.) Do you know why, you will be long dead before you see a third runway at Heathrow airport? Because of the Nimbys of Richmond and the Green lobby will be marching down to the lawyers office to issue their opposition to such plans via judicial review. So good luck with that Rachel, rather you than me.

The Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer KC himself actually had the neck to say the following. "For too long, blockers have had the upper hand in legal challenges - using our court processes to frustrate growth. We're putting an end to this challenge culture by taking on the NIMBYs and a broken system that has slowed down our progress as a nation.”

Legal challenges you say? Courts you say? Goodness, how dare they. The irony, the absolute irony of Sir Keir Starmer KC complaining about people taking legal challenges against the national interest when he built his entire career off stuff like this. Do you know what Starmer used to call ‘blockers’ and NIMBYs? My clients.

Photo by Renaldo Matamoro on Unsplash

I would say that it is cute to see Starmer swapping his wig and gown for a hard hat and hi-vis jacket but you don’t actually wear a wig in the UK Supreme Court as Starmer knows only too well given how much time he has spent there in “legal challenges.”