Attorney under fire

What should Lord Hermer do now?

The government’s senior law officer has been accused of a conflict of interest by the shadow justice secretary.

According to reports in today’s newspapers, Robert Jenrick has written to Sir Chris Wormald, head of the civil service, complaining about clients Lord Hermer represented before he was appointed attorney general in the Labour government.

Lord Hermer KC speaking about the rule of law at Guildhall last week

Hermer’s refusal to reveal whether he had advised ministers on cases involving his past clients “risks undermining public confidence in the attorney general’s office and rule of law”, Jenrick told the cabinet secretary..

Unsurprisingly, the Cabinet Office has rejected calls for an investigation. It said there were “rigorous” protocols to ensure law officers were not consulted on issues that could raise conflicts of interest.

This is all very strange. Jenrick shadows the justice secretary Shabana Mahmood. Why is he now trespassing on the territory of the shadow attorney general, Lord Wolfson of Tredegar?

The bandwagon that Jenrick is now trying to join was already rolling at some speed when another Conservative politician launched an attack on Hermer yesterday.