§ 21. Mr. Gordon Prentice (Pendle) (Lab)What criteria she uses to select counsel to represent the Government in court. [176011]
§ The Solicitor-GeneralThe selection criteria for counsel to represent the Government include experience in advocacy and advice, quality of written work, academic strength and references.
§ Mr. PrenticeI thank my right hon. and learned Friend for that answer, but is there any kind of performance monitoring of Treasury counsel—not only for those who represent the Government in court, but for those who represent them in inquiries? For example, was Jonathan Sumption, who represented the Government during the Hutton inquiry, told whether he did a good or bad job? What kind of feedback did he get?
§ The Solicitor-GeneralI cannot comment on that specific case, but continuous monitoring and feedback happens for important cases. The panel is reviewed, so that people do not stay on it for life. People's performance is reviewed to determine whether they will stay on the panel of counsel to be instructed by the Government.