§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
Under what circumstances they consider it constitutionally appropriate for ministers to criticise publicly the decisions of the judiciary. [HL1803]
§ The Lord Chancellor (Lord Irvine of Lairg)The Government unequivocally support the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. These are in no way diminished by the fact that when the courts make a decision adverse to a government department it is open to a Minister to say publicly that he does not accept the decision and intends to test it on appeal.
Ministers do not normally comment publicly on the decisions of the courts in cases in which they are not involved, but they may sometimes do so, if, for example, a particular decision leads Ministers to be of the opinon that the law has not been interpreted by the courts in accordance with Parliament's intentions and needs to be clarified or otherwise amended.