Truss may lose Lord Chancellor position
Theresa May is being urged by Cabinet ministers to strip Liz Truss of her role as Lord Chancellor and break up the Ministry of Justice amid concerns the department is “not fit for purpose”. Senior government sources have told The Daily Telegraph that a series of embarrassing mistakes have prompted “concerns at the very top that a major overhaul is needed”. In an attack on Ms Truss, colleagues highlighted a number of errors made over the past couple of months.
THERESA MAY is being urged by Cabinet ministers to strip Liz Truss of her role as Lord Chancellor and break up the Ministry of Justice amid concerns the department is “not fit for purpose”.
Senior Government sources have told The Daily Telegraph that a series of embarrassing mistakes have prompted “concerns at the very top that a major overhaul is needed”.
In an attack on Ms Truss, colleagues highlighted a number of errors in the past couple of months, including the Justice Secretary’s apparent refusal to defend High Court judges after they came under attack over the Brexit court case.
Lord Neuberger, the President of the Supreme Court, warned that Ms Truss had failed in her duty as Lord Chancellor to stand up for the judiciary, prompting claims of a conflict of interest with her job as Secretary of State.
Ms Truss holds both offices as a result of changes initiated by Tony Blair which in 2007 removed the Lord Chancellor role from a judge and made it into a political appointment. However, the holder must still oversee the way the law of the land is applied across Government and speak up for the judiciary. Splitting the roles would be seen as a significant snub to Ms Truss.
A Cabinet source said the justice secretary had raised eyebrows for her handling of incidents, including prison staffing numbers, and confusion over whether rape victims would be allowed to give evidence via video-link.
The error prompted Lord Chief Justice Lord Thomas to accuse Ms Truss of “misleading” the public over rape trials. His colleague, former Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge, said her silence on the Brexit case constituted a “very serious” failing in her legal obligations.
“She is in relative terms a very inexperienced politician with no legal experience, who has been silent, and answered to Downing Street when she should have been independent,” he added.
A second government source said: “The majority of backbenchers who are interested in these things agree the Blair reforms were wrong and the Lord Chancellor should be given to a senior lawyer freed from the tough prisons brief.”
A Whitehall source said: “A series of blunders have highlighted the deeprooted and at times absurd problems and conflicts within the department.”
While The Daily Telegraph understands that Cabinet colleagues are urging removing the title from Ms Truss, the Government last night denied any plans were afoot. A spokesman said: “No such plan is under consideration.”
In a new blow to Ms Truss, a parliamentary panel of experts yesterday said increases of up to £20,000 in probate fees were unlawful. The influential committee said she might be overstepping her powers by introducing the charges, described as a “death tax” by critics.
In a highly critical report, the parliamentary joint committee on statutory instruments said that the new charges – which would see payments for larger estates rise from £155 to £20,000 – had the “hallmarks of taxes rather than fees”.