High Court Judges (Hansard, 20 July 1990)

§ Mr. Austin Mitchell
To ask the Attorney-General what is the number and percentage of High Court judges, by rank, who are(a) ex-solicitors and (b) ex-barristers.

§ The Attorney-General
It is at present a statutory requirement that anyone appointed to the High Court bench must be a barrister of at least 10 years' standing (Supreme Court Act 1981, section 10(3)(c)). The Courts and Legal Services Bill, currently before Parliament, provides for a change in this requirement.

§ Mr. Austin Mitchell
To ask the Attorney-General what information he has on the number and percentage of High Court judges, by rank, who are(a) public school educated, (b) university educated and (c) Oxbridge educated.

§ The Attorney-General
There are 83 High Court judges, of whom 64 (77.1 per cent.) went to schools which are today listed in the "Independent Schools Yearbook," 80 (96.4 per cent.) went to university, and 70 (84.3 per cent.) went to either Oxford or Cambridge.
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§ Mr. Austin Mitchell
To ask the Attorney-General what is the number and percentage of High Court judges, by rank, who are(a) 70 years old and over and (b) 60 years old and over.

§ The Attorney-General
There are 83 High Court judges, of whom 23 (27.7 per cent.) are aged between 60 and 69, and 10 (12 per cent.) are aged between 70 and 75, giving a total of 33 (39.8 per cent.) who are aged 60 and over.