Tuesday, August 15, 2017

APPROVED BY M’LORD: Former Police Chief & Legal Complaints board member receives approval from Lord Carloway to fill ‘window dressing’ Judicial Complaints Reviewer post

Ex top cop & SLCC Board member is new Judicial Investigator. A FORMER Deputy Chief Constable of Tayside Police who served as Convener of the Standards Commission for Scotland and was a board member of a tainted legal complaints quango – has been approved by Scotland’s top judge to investigate judges and serve as Scotland’s third Judicial Complaints Reviewer (JCR).

Ian Gordon, who also formerly served as a board member of the pro-lawyer Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC) and is currently Acting Commissioner with the Northern Ireland Public Service Ombudsman Office – will now serve as Judicial Complaints Reviewer from 1 September 2017 to 31 August 2020.

Ian Gordon’s appointment as JCR, which is required to be approved by Scotland's top judge – currently Lord Carloway - was announced by Justice Secretary Michael Matheson yesterday, Monday 14 August.

However, MSPs from across the political spectrum have called for the judicial watchdog to be given new powers and a review of the role undertaken by the Scottish Government amid controversy over the lack of powers to the JCR.

Moi Ali - Scotland's first Judicial Complaints Reviewer branded the JCR role as “window dressing” in evidence to MSPs at Holyrood during September 2013 – featured in a report here: As Scotland’s top judge battles on against transparency, Judicial Complaints Reviewer tells MSPs judges should register their interests like others in public life

Moi Ali continually called for extra powers until she quit the role in 2014 amid lack of cooperation from the judiciary & Scottish Government.

Gordon’s appointment as Judicial Complaints Reviewer comes after both his predecessors complained the SNP Government starved the post of resources.

Last week, the Sunday Herald published a further report on the controversy around the office of Judicial Complaints Reviewer, revealing current Gillian Thompson has published further concerns on the relevance and efficacy of the job.

Gillian Thompson said her contracted hours of just three days a month “inevitably” led to delays, “inconvenience for complainants” and ultimately “a poor service”.

She said she doubted public expectations were being met, complained her access to investigation files was limited, and urged ministers to “review the relevance of the role”.

Gillian Thompson published two annual reports on her work as JCR, last week - which contain no case histories after the Scottish Government suggested such references be excluded in published reports.

Several weeks ago Thompson was caught in a controversy where documents released by the Scottish Government revealed she had accused her predecessor of being the source of media interest in the lack of published annual reports by the JCR.

The accusations turned out to be false, and the Scottish Government ordered journalists to destroy the initial release of documents, which was swapped for another version by Stuart Lewis, a Senior Media Manager for the Scottish Government’s Justice & Education hub. Lewis refused to identify who took the decision to order destruction of the FOI documents.

Further concerns have been raised after the Scottish Information Commissioner dodged calls to look into the case, after journalists called for a re-examination of how exemptions are used by the Scottish Government where Thompson’s written accusations were then censored under the guise of ‘protecting free and frank discussions between officials’.

A full report and publication of the FOI documents on the controversy around Thompson and the Scottish Government’s FOI release can be found here: Scottish Government request destruction of FOI papers - Files reveal Ministers silence on judicial complaints & civil servants attempts to exclude case histories from Judicial Investigator’s annual reports

Ms Thompson’s predecessor Moi Ali also complained a lack of funds and support had made the role of Judicial Complaints Reviewer “enormously frustrating and difficult”.

Today, it has been reported LibDem MSP Liam McArthur has urged Mr Matheson to review the post of JCR.

In a letter to the Justice Secretary, Mr McArthur said: “The only two holders of the post have both provided blistering accounts of their experiences. In appointing the third JCR the Scottish Government cannot ignore the criticisms of his predecessors and the serious questions that surround the credibility of this office. It is clear that the current system is not working.”

Tory MSP Liam Kerr said: “Given the criticism levelled at the Scottish Government by the former reviewer, it appears her successor has quite a job on his hands.

“If this role is to be a success, ministers have to provide the resources and support necessary. We can’t afford for this to be yet another wasted 12 months.”

Labour MSP Claire Baker added: “It is clear that the new JCR needs far greater support.

“For the SNP to simply announce a new JCR but fail to address any of the serious structural shortcomings in the role is simply unacceptable.

“The Scottish Government cannot hide from their responsibility. They must fully fund and resource the new JCR so that he can carry out his role in the best interests of the public.”

However the biography issued by the Scottish Government on Mr Gordon contains no references to his time as one of the first intake of Board members at the discredited Scottish Legal Complaints Commission.

The SLCC was recently branded as a “toothless waste of time” by former Cabinet Secretary Alex Neil MSP (SNP Airdrie and Shotts) after the legal services regulator failed to act in a high profile case involving a senior QC caught up in a cash payments scandal.

The team responsible for setting up the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission and it’s board members in 2008 was led by Angela McArthur, Chief Executive of the Parole Board since December 2009

During Mr Gordon’s time on the board of the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission, the pro-lawyer regulator lurched from controversy to scandal, where media reports revealed board members infighting over dealing with members of the public, campaign groups, and drunken exchanges between board members & senior SLCC staff.

Ministerial Announcement of new Judicial Complaints Reviewer: Judicial Complaints Reviewer appointed

Cabinet Secretary for Justice Michael Matheson has announced the appointment of the third Judicial Complaints Reviewer.

Ian Gordon is a retired Deputy Chief Constable of Tayside Police. He is currently an Acting Commissioner with the Northern Ireland Public Service Ombudsman Office.

He was seconded to HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and was the lead police officer on the annual statutory inspection of five UK police forces, and was a member of the UK Police Professional Standards Group. He has conducted criminal, conduct and complaints investigations in the UK and undertaken enquires abroad on behalf of the Foreign Office.

Mr Gordon was also a Convener for the Standards Commission between 2010 and 2017 and contributed to a focused improvement to awareness of the codes of Conduct by elected members and Boards of Public Bodies.

This appointment was established by the Judiciary and Courts (Scotland) Act 2008 to review, when asked, the handling of a complaints investigation into members of the judiciary, to ensure that it has been dealt with in accordance with The Complaints About the Judiciary (Scotland) Rules 2016. The Reviewer has no powers to consider the merits of any complaint or the disposal of the complaint.

The appointment will be for a period of three years from 1 September 2017 to 31 August 2020, and will be paid a daily fee of £217. The appointment has been made with the approval of the Lord President.

All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process.

FROM EX-COP TO JUDGING JUDGES - BIOGRAPHY IAN GORDON:

Ian Gordon is listed as Chair on the website of the Ericht Trust and is an active director of the Ericht Trust which is also registered as a company limited by guarantee, managed by a Board of Trustees who are elected at an Annual General Meeting, and a Company Secretary.

The Ericht Trust has since reported in March 2017 to be in the process of changing it’s name to the Erich Trust.

The Ericht Trust describes itself as a 'not for profit' charitable organisation, which focuses on community development and regeneration in line with Scottish Government policies on community empowerment. It is a member of Development Trusts Association Scotland (DTAS). DTAS provides support to its members and a link into a network of the many comparable Trusts working for the benefit of their communities across Scotland. Being part of this bigger family gives strength to the organisation when voicing opinion or seeking support from Government and Local Authorities.

The object of the Trust is to stimulate a range of community projects which will benefit residents and businesses and draw visitors to this area.

A register of interests posted by the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission also listed Mr Gordon as a director of Quarere Ltd.

Quaere Limited was set up on 20 Dec 2006 has its registered office in Perthshire. Its current status is listed as "Dissolved". The company's first directors were Marion Therese Gordon, Ian Alexander Gordon. Quaere Limited has no subsidiaries.

The company was listed under the headings of SIC 2003:7414 — Business And Management Consultancy Activities & SIC 2007: 70229 — Management Consultancy Activities (Other Than Financial Management)

Last annual accounts of Quarere Ltd were filed in 2009.

Other interests listed in Mr Gordon’s register of interests from his time at the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission include:

• Associate Professor in Policing for Charles Sturt University (Australia).
• Formerly Chair of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS) Professional Standards Business Area.
• Vice-Chair of ACPOS General Policing Business Area.

Previous articles on the Judicial Complaints Reviewer and complaints against Scotland’s judiciary can be found here: Judicial Complaints Reviewer - Reviewing complaints against Scotland's judiciary

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

Top judge Lord Carloway approves his own judicial complaints investigator to investigate judges?

Anyone think this sounds like a conflict of interest?

What numpty dreamed up this arrangement?!

Anonymous said...

wow cant they find someone who doesnt have 10 jobs already to do this?

Anonymous said...

Presumably if his face didn't fit Carloway would have said No although I suspect they carefully selected him with backing from the judiciary prior to Matheson's announcement.

I don't know much about Ian Gordon however none of these public bodies such as the Standards Commission for Scotland or the Ombudsman for Northern Ireland are there to do any shred of good for the public.

More of a jamboree for their staff and partners to go here there and everywhere on junkets and learning cruises.

Whoever reads my comment will realise I am correct in what I say.After all if the Standards Commission was any good we would not have such ridiculously low standards in public life and the amount of jobs for the boys and literally thousands of public servants on the take in publicly funded jobs as we have today and well into the future I imagine.

Don't bother to deny any of this.Flying to Australia on the public purse for a conference is not what is expected of someone who is being paid a fortune every year to sit in court judging the rest of us who don't get airline tickets courtesy of taxpayers. I could cite numerous examples.You know the rest.

Anonymous said...

You may also be interested to learn another board member of the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission and former Scottish Information Commissioner Kevin Dunion replaced Ian Gordon as Convener of the Standards Commission for Scotland.

Oddly enough we hardly heard a lot less from Mr Dunion during his time on the SLCC compared when he was the Scottish Information Commissioner.

I wonder how vocal Mr Gordon will be as Judicial Complaints Reviewer given the absolute scandal around the job where both Moi Ali and Gillian Thompson asked for more powers and resources but got nothing in return from the Scottish 'Government'

Reference to Mr Dunion succeeding Ian Gordon at the Standards Commission -

http://www.standardscommissionscotland.org.uk/about-us/news/new-convener-appointed

New Convener Appointed

28th November 2016

The Standards Commission for Scotland is pleased to announce that Professor Kevin Dunion OBE has been appointed by the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body to be the new Convener of the Standards Commission as of 1 February 2017.

Professor Dunion commenced his appointment as a Member of the Standards Commission on 1 September 2015. As well as having chaired and participated in a number of Hearings of the Standards Commission since his appointment as a Member, Professor Dunion also brings to his Convenership experience of disputes and appeals, as well as a high level of integrity and discretion and a strong commitment to encouraging high ethical standards in public life.

Professor Dunion is Honorary Professor in the Dundee Law School, University of Dundee, where he is also Director of the Centre for Freedom of Information. During his time in post as the first Scottish Information Commissioner, Professor Dunion issued over 1,500 formal determinations on appeals made under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. In 2014 he was appointed by the President of the World Bank as a member of the Bank's Access to Information Appeals Board. He also continues to serve as a Board Member of the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission.

The term of office of the current Convener, Mr Ian A. Gordon OBE QPM LL.B (Hons), ends on 31 January 2017. The Standards Commission is grateful to Mr Gordon for his leadership, hard work and commitment over the past seven years.

Anonymous said...

Interesting qualifications

LLB.Bachelor of Law.

Remind us again how many times someone with a law degree or LLB criticises the judiciary,legal fraternity or vested interests?

Ah yes.

That would be None.

Thought so.

Birds of a feather.

Anonymous said...

Any chance of the MSPs quoted in the article making noises at the Scottish Parliament?

They dont need the Scottish Government to start a review of judicial complaints MSPs can do it themselves.

They did with Andrew Flanagan and the SPA so how about some action this time?

Anonymous said...

Michael Matheson MSP forgot to mention Gordon's glowing record at the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission.

Anyone like to take a guess why no mention of the crooked SLCC?

Anonymous said...

"The appointment will be for a period of three years from 1 September 2017 to 31 August 2020, and will be paid a daily fee of £217. The appointment has been made with the approval of the Lord President."

Watch the £217 a day go up for Nicola Sturgeon's new Judicial Complaints Rebuffer.

Probably make it £217 an hour eh Nicola same as lawyers like to charge for a phone call?

Anonymous said...

Nice to see you went for the detail instead of just the bare press release from Scotgov which seems to make up most of the other coverage.

Interesting background to this trust you mention Gordon is chairman of.Worth closer inspection.

Anonymous said...

I never knew Kevin Dunion was at the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission until now.Always willing to appear in the papers as Scottish Information Commissioner yet I see very little about him at the SLCC same for Ian Gordon.

Anonymous said...

SNP are going all out as the corruption party now because they are finished and its all down to Nicola Sturgeon the woman who let the Tories back in to Scotland.Well at least they will do a better job than this bunch.Out of power for decades I hope.Scotland has been like a ruin since 2007 everything is the same except all these idiots on public jobs are collecting even bigger pay packets and freebies now than they did before.Scotlands corrupt government must go!

Anonymous said...

In a letter to the Justice Secretary, Mr McArthur said: “The only two holders of the post have both provided blistering accounts of their experiences. In appointing the third JCR the Scottish Government cannot ignore the criticisms of his predecessors and the serious questions that surround the credibility of this office. It is clear that the current system is not working.”

Tory MSP Liam Kerr said: “Given the criticism levelled at the Scottish Government by the former reviewer, it appears her successor has quite a job on his hands.

“If this role is to be a success, ministers have to provide the resources and support necessary. We can’t afford for this to be yet another wasted 12 months.”

Labour MSP Claire Baker added: “It is clear that the new JCR needs far greater support.

“For the SNP to simply announce a new JCR but fail to address any of the serious structural shortcomings in the role is simply unacceptable.

“The Scottish Government cannot hide from their responsibility. They must fully fund and resource the new JCR so that he can carry out his role in the best interests of the public.”

The reply will either be we are studying ways of doing nothing or plain doing nothing.

The msps can review the Judicial Complaints Reviewer job without Sturgeon and Matheson stalling for time.Get on with the job and bring all these people before the same committee Alex Neil was on when the Scottish Police Authority boss was questioned and eventually had to resign.

Anonymous said...

I always wondered why the bbc kept away from your judges petition and anything to do with the judiciary and lawyers well now we all know this is because the bbc are on the take the same as lawyers and judges and all other public scroungers on public salaries

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/07/19/bbc-pay-list-hidden-names-corporation-does-not-want-see/

BBC pay list: the hidden names the corporation does not want you to see

Look at all the list of supposed journalists and their salaries all paid for by the license fee nothing short of a television tax https://order-order.com/2017/07/19/bbc-salaries-revealed/

Anonymous said...

You may be interested in the following https://www.theyworkforyou.com/sp/?id=2017-01-17.5.0

Liam McArthur Liberal Democrat

I speak to the motion in my name, on behalf of the SPCB appointment panel, to invite members of Parliament to agree to the appointment of Michael McCormick and Tricia Stewart as members of the Standards Commission for Scotland.

Under the Ethical Standards in Public Life etc (Scotland) Act 2000, members of the commission are appointed by the SPCB with the agreement of Parliament. The role of the Standards Commission for Scotland is to encourage high ethical standards in public life, and it does that by promoting and enforcing the codes of conduct for councillors and members of devolved public bodies.

The SPCB sat as a selection panel on 12 December 2016. I chaired the panel alongside Gordon MacDonald and David Stewart. On behalf of the SPCB, I thank Louise Rose, the independent assessor who oversaw the process and who has confirmed, by way of a validation certificate, that the appointment process conformed to good practice and that the nominations are made on merit after a fair, open and transparent process.

From a very strong field of candidates, we seek the agreement of the Parliament to appoint Michael McCormick and Tricia Stewart as members of the Standards Commission for Scotland. I also thank, on behalf of the SPCB, the outgoing members, Ian Gordon and Matt Smith, for their services to the commission and wish them well for the future.

Turning to the candidates, we believe that Michael McCormick and Tricia Stewart will bring to the Standards Commission for Scotland high levels of integrity and discretion and a strong commitment to encouraging and promoting high ethical standards in public life.

I am sure that the Parliament will want to wish Michael McCormick and Tricia Stewart every success in their new roles.

I move,

That the Parliament agrees, under section 8 of the Ethical Standards in Public Life etc. (Scotland) Act 2000, to the appointment of Michael McCormick and Tricia Stewart as Members of the Standards Commission for Scotland.

The Presiding Officer:

The question on the motion will be put at decision time.

Anonymous said...

Read the part about "Gordon conducted criminal, conduct and complaints investigations in the UK and undertaken enquires abroad on behalf of the Foreign Office"

Any idea what this is all about?Given he is investigating judges now we should be told exactly what enquiries and investigations Ian Gordon has worked on in the past?

https://www.holyrood.com/articles/news/former-tayside-police-deputy-chief-constable-appointed-judicial-complaints-reviewer

Former Tayside Police deputy chief constable appointed as judicial complaints reviewer
Written by Jenni Davidson on 14 August 2017 in News

Ian Gordon will be the third judicial complaints reviewer since the role was created in 2011

A former deputy chief constable of Tayside Police has been appointed as Scotland’s third judicial complaints reviewer.

Retired Tayside DCC Ian Gordon is currently an acting commissioner with the Northern Ireland Public Service Ombudsman Office.

During his career Gordon conducted criminal, conduct and complaints investigations in the UK and undertaken enquires abroad on behalf of the Foreign Office.

He was seconded to HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and was the lead police officer on the annual statutory inspection of five UK police forces.

Gordon was also a member of the UK Police Professional Standards Group.

Between 2010 and 2017 he was also a convener for the Standards Commission, where he contributed to improving awareness of the codes of conduct for elected members and boards of public bodies.

The judicial complaints reviewer is a free service for anyone who is unhappy about the way their complaint about a member of the judiciary has been handled.

When asked to do so, the reviewer will check that investigations into judges have been dealt with according to the Complaints About the Judiciary (Scotland) Rules 2016 – although the reviewer has no power to comment on the merit of the complaint itself.

This role was established by the Judiciary and Courts (Scotland) Act in 2008 and the first reviewer, Moi Ali, took up post in 2011.

The current judicial complaints reviewer is Gillian Thompson, whose term of office ends on 31 August 2017.

Ian Gordon’s appointment is for three years from 1 September 2017 to 31 August 2020 and will be paid a daily fee of £217 for up to three days a month.

Anonymous said...

Ian Gordon serves as Convener of the Standards Commission for seven years yet there is hardly any photographic record of his activities or appearances for the commission that I can find.Why is this? How can someone be in as high profile a job as this and there is virtually nothing about him online except a load of press releases and a few newspaper articles with the same pr pasted into their own version?Was there some kind of weird embargo on using Gordon's picture?Public have a right to know surely who he is and what he is up to!

Anonymous said...

Ian Gordon was sent to Northern Ireland to investigate a complaint about DUP councillors looks like the Irish Press were more attentive and found out his costs and what he was there to investigate

http://www.irishnews.com/news/2017/06/07/news/official-brought-from-scotland-to-sort-councillor-dispute-cost-2-000-1047171/

Official brought from Scotland to sort councillor dispute cost £2,000

Brendan Hughes
07 June, 2017

A COUNCIL standards watchdog spent more than £2,000 of public money drafting in an adjudicator from Scotland to deal with a dispute between two unionist councillors.

In April the UUP's Jim Dillon made a public apology to the DUP's Andrew Ewing following a year-long investigation by the Northern Ireland Local Government Commissioner for Standards.

A probe had been launched after Mr Ewing made a complaint about an incident during last year's Lisburn and Castlereagh City Business Awards at La Mon Hotel.

It was alleged that Mr Dillon had used swear words against Mr Ewing, but it's understood Mr Dillon rejected this, saying he had called him a "flipping balloon".

The year-long investigation involved a senior adjudicator being drafted in from Scotland.

Following a mediation process, Mr Dillon agreed to apologise to Mr Ewing for his "offensive and inappropriate language".

The Northern Ireland Ombudsman's office said Marie Anderson had excluded herself from the hearings process as she had overseen the investigation before being appointed as standards commissioner.

Instead, she appointed as acting commissioner Ian Gordon, who until January this year was convener of the Standards Commission for Scotland.

It has now emerged that £1,287 in fees were paid. A further £726.52 was spent on travel and accommodation, and £70.49 on subsistence.

The costs were revealed in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request.

However, the commissioner's office was unable to disclose the full cost of the investigation.

SDLP Lagan Valley MLA Pat Catney hit out at the DUP for pursuing the matter, saying: "This whole situation is an absolute farce.

"Two councillors have a small disagreement and we have to bring in a senior adjudicator from Scotland at the ratepayers' cost to head up a year-long investigation?

"This whole thing could have been resolved by a simple conversation and a quiet understanding."

The event where the dispute happened was attended by DUP leader Arlene Foster and featured a performance from former Strictly Come Dancing stars James and Ola Jordan.

As lead project sponsor, Lisburn and Castlereagh council spent £8,000 on the awards bash.

In response to an FOI request, the council said it has "not yet been notified of any costs it may be expected to cover" in relation to the standards probe.

The DUP did not respond to requests for a comment.

Anonymous said...

Personally I find this shocking and degrading to democracy our elected parliament is forced to seek approval of a top judge for the person who has the job of investigating the same judges

Anonymous said...

This is the kind of detail I have always enjoyed on your blog Peter.Right to the heart of it and nothing left out.Might I suggest Mr Gordon publishes his full register of interests when he takes over as Judicial Complaints Reviewer including what may well be contact he has had with members of the judiciary and the legal profession throughout his career as a Police Officer and in the other jobs including his time at the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission.

Keep up the good work Peter and thanks for the inspiring read as always.

Anonymous said...

re the quote from the Holyrood article as I recall the Deputy Chief Constables and Assistant Chief Constables often got up to all sorts and were off on many foreign excursions with unlimited budgets while the Chief Constable eked out an existence at home as CC's movements were often more visible and followed than their underlings.

Will be interesting to read more of what former Deputy Chief Constable Ian Gordon has planned for the Judicial Complaints Reviewer and whether the trend of thoughtlessness in not producing annual reports will continue.

Anonymous said...

Yes agree with the comment about the bbc keeping all this off the air seldom is a country forced to put up with a national broadcaster so anti that country and will criminalise you if you dont pay its protection money time we are rid of fairy tales written by bankers lawyers and other robbers in robes and their thieving brethren whichever party puts this lot in their place I am all for and not necessarily the nats because they had their chance and did nothing time for a change

Anonymous said...

The SLCC website still shows Dunion as a member of their board so he got Ian Gordon's old job and is still fronting a Toothless waste of time legal complaints quango for the Law Society of Scotland.

Only in Scotland eh?

https://www.scottishlegalcomplaints.org.uk/about-slcc/who-we-are/prof-kevin-dunion-obe.aspx

Prof Kevin Dunion OBE

Kevin Dunion is Honorary Professor in the School of Social Sciences (Law), University of Dundee where he is a Director of the Centre for Freedom of Information.

He brings considerable experience of dealing with disputes and appeals. During his time in post as the first Scottish Information Commissioner, he issued over 1500 formal determinations on appeals made under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

In 2015 he was appointed to the Standards Commission for Scotland, which conducts hearings into reported breaches codes of conduct by Councillors and board members of Scottish public authorities.

He is also as a member of the World Bank's Access to Information Appeals Board, and the Appeals Panel of the International Finance Corporation.

Anonymous said...

Reading about your judiciary and politicians I guess the Scottish enlightenment was really about how to rip off your own people and get away with it rather than the rose tinted nonsense people think it is.
No need to export your wicked corruption to the rest of the world guys we have enough of it already!

Anonymous said...

As Miss Ali called it window dressing. No wonder she resigned because she knew what we all know there is no complaints system against these judicial maggots. Put it this way if there was a robust complaints system this blog would not have been necessary but good on you Peter for showing how corrupt these people are. There is a system for making a complaint that is true but it will be shut down to protect the rats in wigs and gowns who put their clients interests last. Stay away from lawyers, they are the scum of the earth.

Anonymous said...

tend to agree with the comments already posted if the man has any honesty he will kick up a fuss about no powers or reports and do something instead of just sitting there and do nothing

Anonymous said...

Why should those who are being investigated have any say in who is appointed to the role of JCR? It only makes sense if the appointed person has bias in favour of the Judges. I know this is obvious but these Judges and lawyers in general have had things their own way for far too long. Carloway is hostile to this whole process and he should not have the power to approve the person who is being appointed the JCR, beggars belief.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...

Personally I find this shocking and degrading to democracy our elected parliament is forced to seek approval of a top judge for the person who has the job of investigating the same judges.............yes clearly all are not equal before the law. He should have no powers over this decision, and would not want any if he cared about his public image and his integrity.

Anonymous said...

In the light of his history - not least as a board member of the “toothless waste of time” which is the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission - Mr. Gordon has clearly been nominated because he is someone who will not rock the boat but rather tow the party line and follow the judiciary's lead.......unlike his two predecessors.