I think it is an important statement and it is an important point and it is something that we do have to achieve. Can I say, first of all today, that I learnt this morning that the Lord Chief Justice, in giving evidence to the House of Lords Constitution Committee, made a specific reference to that statement and to two particular parts of that? I won’t repeat the two parts of the statement, but he read out quite a detailed part of it and he went on to say that it will increasingly be a test of this Assembly’s maturity as a legislature and Parliament that it recognises and understands the importance of the independence of its judicial institutions and the principles on which they are founded and operate, and it is equally important that our judicial institutions know that they command the confidence of the legislature and the people of Wales and that they are defended from political interference, unwarranted and unsubstantiated attacks and criticism in the exercise of their public responsibilities.

He, in fact, then went on to say: ‘It seems to be a pretty clear statement, actually, of the duty of the Lord Chancellor’. And he went on to say: ‘I regret that I have to criticise her as severely as I have, but, to my mind, she’s completely and absolutely wrong. I’m disappointed and I can understand what pressures there were in November, but she has taken the position that is constitutionally, absolutely wrong.’

I believe that is an endorsement of the position that we’ve stated as regards my role as law officer and the position of this Assembly. I think what is important is that the individual Members of this Assembly and the leaders of the political parties always stand up for those fundamental principles because they are a bedrock of our institutions, and if we wish to be taken seriously, as a jurisdiction and as a Parliament, then we have to ensure that everyone upholds those principles.