Legal Services Bill [HL]

My Lords, I beg to move that the House do agree with the Commons in their Amendments Nos. 88B to 88M in lieu of Commons Amendments Nos. 74 to 77 and 81 to 88, to which this House disagreed. We turn again to the important role of the Lord Chief Justice in appointments to and removals from the Legal Services Board. I am a late entry in the debates that your Lordships have undertaken on this matter, but I know that there has long been genuine concern about, first, the role of the Lord Chief Justice in consultation, and then, following the amendments made in the other place, what role the Lord Chief Justice might involve—is consultation to be real or not? I confirmed in our last discussions that my honourable friend Bridget Prentice had written to the Lord Chief Justice to consult him on the process we are undertaking for the appointment of the chair of the board. The consultation with him focused on the criteria against which candidates for the position of chair are judged. He asked to look at the draft specifications for the chairman of the board, and was invited to comment on the process we are undertaking, including composition of the appointments panel and how the campaign will be carried out in line with guidance issued by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. He was also invited to suggest names of potential candidates whom the recruitment consultants may wish to contact. I confirm that my honourable friend will write again shortly with respect to the other members of the board. The reason why the Lord Chief Justice has not yet been written to is that the chairman will sit on the appointments panel. Clearly, it is important that the process for appointing the chairman be concluded before consultation takes place on the appointment process for other members. Following that debate, we took away the points made about clarifying the role of the Lord Chief Justice and agreed that it would be helpful to set them out in the Bill, especially in the light of the discussions that your Lordships' House undertook only a few days ago. The amendments being brought forward from the other place are intended to do exactly that, requiring the Lord Chancellor to consult the Lord Chief Justice on both the appointment process and the final selection. In clarifying that role, Amendments Nos. 88B to 88M meet the concerns raised previously in both Houses, while ensuring that the Bill is compatible with best practice in relation to public appointments. Moved, That the House do agree with the Commons in their Amendments Nos. 88B to 88M in lieu of Commons Amendments Nos. 74 to 77 and 81 to 88, to which this House has disagreed.—(Lord Hunt of Kings Heath.)