Justice minister Lord Wolfson of Tredegar (David Wolfson QC) has handed in his resignation a day after it emerged that the prime minister and chancellor of the exchequer received fixed penalty notices in relation to a Downing Street gathering during lockdown.
In a letter to Boris Johnson, Lord Wolfson said: ‘I regret that recent disclosures lead to the inevitable conclusion that there was repeated rule-breaking, and breaches of the criminal law, in Downing Street.
'I have – again, with considerable regret – come to the conclusion that the scale, context and nature of those breaches mean that it would be inconsistent with the rule of law for that conduct to pass with constitutional impunity, especially when many in society complied with the rules at great personal cost, and others were fined or prosecuted for similar, and sometimes apparently more trivial, offences.
‘It is not just a question of what happened in Downing Street, or your own conduct. It is also, and perhaps more so, the official response to what took place. As we obviously do not share that view of these matters, I must ask you to accept my resignation.’
My letter to the Prime Minister today. pic.twitter.com/lADCvKDKbB
— David Wolfson (@DXWQC) April 13, 2022
Lord Wolfson, a barrister who specialises in commercial law, was appointed a justice minister in December 2020. He was responsible for all departmental business in the Lords, and led on several areas, including human rights, civil legal aid, and mediation and dispute resolution. His resignation has been widely praised by legal commentators:
David and I have not always agreed during his tenure as justice minister.
— The Secret Barrister (@BarristerSecret) April 13, 2022
But it has been clear throughout that, as those who knew him at the Bar attest, he is a man of principle and integrity.
We need more politicians like David. https://t.co/kuV7UQjh2h
This is what doing the right thing and acting honourably looks like - thank you @DXWQC for upholding the importance of the rule of law https://t.co/xeHuz6jz4q
— PJ Kirby QC (@kirby_pj) April 13, 2022
Lord David Wolfson QC has resigned as a Justice Minister with a principled and powerful letter which simultaneously does credit to him and exposes the positions taken by his colleagues https://t.co/uoT2axX0eN
— Adam Wagner (@AdamWagner1) April 13, 2022
Very moved and impressed to read this letter, on the rule of law and impunity. Thank you, @DXWQC. https://t.co/RuabxzSPjM
— Caoilfhionn Gallagher QC (@caoilfhionnanna) April 13, 2022
Admirable. But a further dilution of both principle and intelligence at ministerial level of @MoJGovUK. https://t.co/RR41p2MSIU
— Simon Mullings (@spikemullings) April 13, 2022
A very significant resignation, and loss to the government https://t.co/8rsG4kpNew
— Jonathan Jones (@SirJJQC) April 13, 2022
Lord chancellor and justice secretary Dominic Raab tweeted his support for Johnson and Sunak on Tuesday:
The PM has accepted the Met’s decision & apologised. I fully support the PM & Chancellor as they focus on maintaining the UK’s international leadership against Russian brutality in Ukraine, and delivering our recovery from the pandemic for the British people at home.
— Dominic Raab (@DominicRaab) April 12, 2022
Shortly after Lord Wolfson posted his resignation letter on Twitter, Raab tweeted:
David Wolfson @dxwqc is a world-class lawyer and I’m grateful for his remarkable work in improving families' access to mediation, reforming our human rights laws and curtailing the abuse of our libel laws by kleptocrats. His wisdom & intellect will be sorely missed in govt.
— Dominic Raab (@DominicRaab) April 13, 2022
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