- Friday, April 19, 2024
By: Pramod Thomas
IN A curious incident, top lawyers in the UK have accused attorney general Suella Braverman of sacrificing the UK’s reputation.
The lawyers confronted her during the annual general meeting of the Bar Council on Saturday (12) for ‘sidelining’ legal advisers and bypassing the ministerial code, reported The Guardian.
Braverman, attorney general for England and Wales and advocate general for Northern Ireland, was asked how Britain could retain “a shred of credibility” in imploring other countries to follow international law after revealing its own willingness to breach agreements.
The UK government last week unveiled plans to give ministers sweeping powers to “disapply” part of the Brexit deal that the prime minister signed in January.
According to the report, five Queen’s Councils confronted her by telling that a crime which broke the law in a ‘specific and limited way’ was ‘still a crime’.
Boris Johnson is also facing a growing rebellion over the explosive proposals in the internal market bill. Former prime ministers Sir John Major and Tony Blair jointly condemned the Brexit legislation as imperilling the Irish peace process, trade negotiations and the UK’s integrity.
Asked if she believed ministers were breaking the ministerial code with the legislation, Braverman said that the code was not ‘legally enforceable’.
The lawyers also expressed displeasure over her step seeking advice on the measures from three pro-Brexit legal figures, including one junior barrister, instead of approaching senior government lawyers.
