§ Ms. HarmanTo ask the Attorney-General if the Lord Chancellor will be taking any action in respect of the comments of Judge Cassel at Knightsbridge Crown court on 29 November; and if he will make a statement.
§ The Attorney-GeneralHis Honour Judge Sir Harold Cassel has retired on medical grounds.
The judge tendered his resignation on grounds of ill-health in a letter which he sent to the Lord Chancellor on the day before his controversial comments in a case of indecent assault dealt with by him at Knightsbridge Crown court. The Lord Chancellor received the letter on the day of the case. In the light of medical advice, the Lord Chancellor has decided to accept Judge Cassel's resignation.
19WIn his capacity as head of the judiciary the Lord Chancellor issued a statement in the following terms:
It would not be right for me to comment on the sentence passed by Judge Cassel in a recent case of indecent assault. But, having now seen a report of the case, I wish to put on record my personal disapproval of the remarks he made when passing sentence. It is regrettable that a judge should have expressed himself in a way that suggested that there are any circumstances that can excuse or condone indecent assault on children.