Judicial diversity

The Labour government has set up a panel which will examine why women and BME people are under-represented among the judiciary.

The Advisory Panel on Judicial Diversity will identify the barriers to a more diverse judiciary, and make recommendations on achieving “speedier and sustained progress to a judiciary more representative of the people it serves”.

Among the issues the panel will examine are potential applicants’ perception of the role of the judge, and whether this perception deters good candidates from coming forward; and whether support to prospective and new entrants to the judiciary is adequate.

Lord Chancellor Jack Straw said that, despite the increasing numbers of BME and women applicants for judicial office, “progress on diversity remains slow”.