HC Deb 29 June 1966 vol 730 cc1794-6
46. Dr. Summerskill

asked the Attorney-General if he will recommend the setting up of a Royal Commission to investigate the organisation of both branches of the legal profession with a view to increasing their efficiency and saving costs.

The Attorney-General

I do not think that the setting up of a Royal Commission would serve any useful purpose at the present time.

Dr. Summerskill

Would my right hon. and learned Friend bear in mind that both inside and outside the legal profession it is felt that the profession is increasingly archaic and out of date? Would not he agree that intermittent reforms are completely inadquate and that what is required is a comprehensive investigation?

The Attorney-General

What I do know is that important reforms in both branches of the legal profession are now taking place from within the profession. I think that it would be far better to await the outcome of these developments before inviting interference from outside.

Mr. Whitaker

Will my right hon. and learned Friend recollect the legal maxim that no party shall be a judge in its own cause and therefore explain what any profession has to fear from being accountable to an outside body as to how far it satisfies the public interest?

The Attorney-General

I think that these great professions have justified the trust the public has continued to place in them—[HON. MEMBERS: "Oh."]—very rightly. It is all very well to speak of this country having the finest standards of administration of justice in the world while at the same time seeking to denigrate the lawyers who are responsible for that state of affairs.

Sir J. Hobson

Will the Attorney-General accept that we on this side agree with the view that he has expressed? Will he also bear in mind that the Inns of Court and the Bar Council are at present urgently considering the reforms that are necessary? Does he agree that all the other great professions always themselves consider and propose the reforms for themselves before Parliament ever considers them?

The Attorney-General

I am very well aware of these matters and have been pleased to take part in the reforming procedures that are now under way.