We would like to clarify two points of inaccuracy in last week’s roundtable on diversity.
The feature refers to the ‘JAC’s use of positive discrimination’. The Judicial Appointments Commission does not use positive discrimination.
The JAC has applied the equal merit provision policy since its introduction on 1 July 2014. The policy specifies that where two or more candidates are assessed as being of equal merit, the JAC can select a candidate for the purpose of increasing judicial diversity using the equal merit provision introduced by the Crime and Courts Act 2013. All JAC recommendations for appointment continue to be made on merit.
It also mentions the number of times that the equal merit provision has been used as being in ‘single figures’. Between July 2014 and March 2016, the JAC used the equal merit provision 21 times. We appreciate that both these points are reported as representing speakers’ comments at a roundtable discussion. We thank you for the opportunity to clarify these points about the JAC’s work.
Judicial Appointments Commission, London SW1
