It is David Lammy’s big announcement on juries today – so that means another outing for the Tory Trident, Robert Jenrick. The heat-seeking-missile of the Tory frontbench has been itching for a shot at his hapless opposite number, ever since the debacle over leaked prisoners at PMQs three weeks ago. So it was clearly with some relish that Jenrick rose in the Commons this afternoon to denounce the ‘Lammy dodger’ for briefing various statements to the press before first telling parliament. Not something the sainted Conservatives would ever do themselves of course…
That teed up the Lord Chancellor for a fairly torrid time in the House. The Labour awkward squad were well-represented, with Richard Burgon likening Lammy’s change’s to something like ‘Putin’s Russia’. Diane Abbott meanwhile embarrased the government by warning of miscarriages of justice if the right to a jury trial is restricted. She quoted at length a young thrusting lawyer who said:
The right to trial by jury is an important factor in the delicate balance between the power of the state and the freedom of the individual to restrict it. The further it is restricted, the greater the imbalance.
That man name? Yes, you guessed it – Keir Starmer in 1992. Lammy, who, er, has also preached the virtues of jury trials in the past, looked mildly miffed. No further questions, mi lord.
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