The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 places the Lord Chancellor under a statutory duty to defend judges if they are attacked by ministers, the Lord Chief Justice said last week.

Giving evidence before the House of Lords' constitution committee to explain the workings of the Act last week, Lord Phillips said: 'If a government minister were to launch a violent attack on a judge, one would hope the Lord Chancellor would stand up for the judge. It might well happen, and I would be surprised if it has not happened [in the past]. The Act now places him under a statutory duty to do that.'


He added: 'I would hope that if [a minister] were acting inappropriately, he or she would come under a two-pronged attack from me and the Lord Chancellor.'


Lord Phillips added that although the administrative burden had been 'particularly great' over the last six months, he still intended to 'take the Court of Appeal on the road' by holding hearings outside London, and sit on criminal, family and civil appeals.


He said: 'The Lord Chief Justice cannot hope to keep the respect of the judges if they do not see him sitting as a judge and deciding important cases.'