Nicola Sturgeon has hit out at No10 after it was reportedly suggested by Downing Street sources that Scottish judges were "politically biased".
It comes after a legal bid to challenge the suspension of parliament succeeded at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.
READ MORE: Court of Session rules proroguing Parliament was unlawful
Sources in No10 now hitting back at the Scottish judges, suggesting they are politically biased: "We note that last week the High Court in London did not rule that prorogation was unlawful. The legal activists choose the Scottish courts for a reason".
— Tom Newton Dunn (@tnewtondunn) September 11, 2019
After the Sun reported that Downing Street had attacked the ruling by Scottish judges as being “politically motivated”, the First Minister responded: “This is pitiful, pathetic and desperate from No10.”
This is pitiful, pathetic and desperate from No10. https://t.co/1zMSpxBcEk
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) September 11, 2019
Joanna Cherry added on Twitter: “Disgraceful slur on #judicialindependence. We chose the #Scottish courts because we are Scottish & they weren’t on holiday. The is the Supreme Court of Scotland & a higher court than the court of 1st instance in England.”
Disgraceful slur on #judicialindependence. We chose the #Scottish courts because we are Scottish & they weren’t on holiday. The is the Supreme Court of Scotland & a higher court than the court of 1st instance in England. #Cherrycase https://t.co/shpctWbsSk
— Joanna Cherry QC MP (@joannaccherry) September 11, 2019
Justice Secretary Robert Buckland, commenting after reports a Downing Street source had suggested the Scottish judges were “politically biased”, said: “Our judges are renowned around the world for their excellence and impartiality and I have total confidence in their independence in every case.”
Our judges are renowned around the world for their excellence and impartiality and I have total confidence in their independence in every case.
— Robert Buckland QC MP (@RobertBuckland) September 11, 2019
Ms Sturgeon also tweeted: “Today’s Court of Session judgment is of huge constitutional significance – but the immediate political implications are clear. Court says prorogation was unlawful and null and void – so Parliament must be recalled immediately to allow the essential work of scrutiny to continue.”
A group of around 70 parliamentarians had appealed against a ruling by a judge at the court that Boris Johnson's prorogation of Parliament is lawful.
READ MORE: Boris Johnson depicted as criminal in giant Parliament projection
Judge Lord Doherty originally dismissed a challenge against the suspension - which went ahead in the early hours of Tuesday - at the Court of Session last Wednesday, saying it is for politicians and not the courts to decide.
But three judges of the Inner House, the supreme civil court in Scotland, disagreed with Lord Doherty's ruling.
The UK Government plans to appeal against the latest ruling to the Supreme Court.
Former Tory attorney general Dominic Grieve said the ruling is a “serious indictment” on the Government.
Speaking to BBC News, Mr Grieve said: “I think the judgment is a serious indictment on the Government because, leaving aside whether the ruling in law is correct, it is quite clear that on the facts, the judges in Edinburgh concluded that the Government’s explanations for proroguing Parliament were simply inaccurate and untrue.”
He added: “We have been making the same point in the House of Commons.”
Follow updates throughout the day in our politics LIVE blog.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel