Lord Bonomy, a judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, has a rather forbidding demeanour that befits his calling. This distinguished Scottish judge and criminal prosecutor was one of the headline speakers at the Law Society of Scotland’s 60th anniversary conference, held in Edinburgh a couple of weeks ago. Bonomy’s guided tour of the various international judicial forums was diverting and informative. But Obiter was more taken with question time, which rather put him on the spot. ‘Will the International Criminal Court look at the actions of Tony Blair and Condoleeza Rice in the light of the evidence relating to torture in Iraq?’ he was asked by one feisty Scottish solicitor. No, is the answer. In case you were in any doubt. The ICC acts only where sovereign states are themselves unable or unwilling to act, Bonomy stressed – ‘if there are serious allegations that could lead to prosecution, the UK or US should be willing to prosecute themselves’. We shan’t hold our breath.

‘Mr Blair can sleep safely,’ said he.