Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Bill

The Minister refers to the view of the Lord Chief Justice for Northern Ireland, but he is not giving advice but deciding a case. He is speaking judicially. It is quite different to say on the one hand that the Lord Chief Justice may no longer decide the standard of review, but must have regard to a parliamentary statute, while on the other saying that the Lord Chief Justice’s own view is that there should be some restraint by the judges. Those are totally different matters. What the Minister is proposing fundamentally violates the rule of law.