MSPs back plan for Supreme Court

The House of Lords is currently the ultimate appeal court

The Scottish Parliament has backed a plan for a new Supreme Court that would replace the House of Lords as the UK's highest court of appeal.

On Wednesday MSPs voted in favour of the scheme by 63 votes to 56.

This now gives Westminster the go-ahead to legislate for the whole of the UK on the issue, a move condemned by the Scottish Conservatives.

The new court would only deal with Scottish civil cases. Criminal appeals will still be heard in Edinburgh.

Scottish ministers believe replacing the House of Lords with a Supreme Court for appeals will ensure that the Lords are seen as separate and independent from the times it sits as part of the UK Parliament.

However, the Scottish Conservatives say the notion of a Supreme Court is "alien" and will not improve the current system.

This is the right move for Scotland's legal system and I hope that these moves will be broadly welcomed by the parliament Hugh Henry Deputy Justice Minister

Deputy Justice Minister Hugh Henry said: "I believe a Supreme Court for the whole of the UK will bring greater coherence to the system of justice at the highest level, both north and south of the border.

"The current arrangements with the House of Lords can give rise to a perception that the same people are making law and interpreting it.

"The Law Lords accept that this is wrong in that they do not vote on legislation which they may later be called upon to interpret. However this is an unsatisfactory solution to the problem.

"We are not proposing any changes in the range of cases to be dealt with by the court."

Mr Henry said there was a long tradition of Scottish civil appeals cases going to the top UK court.

'Right move'

He added: "There is no reason why these cases, along with potential devolution issues, should not go before a suitably organised Supreme Court.

"There is no evidence that the existing Scottish criminal appeal system needs to be supplemented by a further appeal route to the UK Supreme Court.

"This is the right move for Scotland's legal system and I hope that these moves will be broadly welcomed by the parliament."

The name and notion of a Supreme Court are alien and add nothing to the system we have Tory MP Alan Duncan

The Lord Advocate, Colin Boyd QC, said: "I welcome the creation of a Supreme Court for the United Kingdom.

"In a modern democracy the judiciary should be separate from the legislature and it is right that judges who sometimes have to consider whether acts passed by parliament comply with the European Convention on Human Rights should not sit in parliament."

However, Alan Duncan MP, the Conservative spokesman on constitutional affairs, said his party was against the move.

"The name and notion of a Supreme Court are alien and add nothing to the system we have," he said.

Lord Strathclyde, the Tory leader in the House of Lords, added: "If a Conservative government was elected next spring we would not implement this change but would maintain tried and tested arrangements that have worked well."

The Conservatives pointed out that only a small number of cases are appealed from Scotland to the House of Lords - an average of four a year.