Attorney General Richard Hermer KC, the government’s chief legal officer, has pledged its commitment to international law at his swearing-in on Wednesday.
The Alyth Synagogue member said at the Royal Courts of Justice, “Just as we will promote the rule of law domestically, so we will seek to promote international law and the rule of law in the international legal order.
"We will support the Foreign Secretary in all his efforts — cognisant of the importance of international law and the rule of law for the prosperity and security of all global citizens.”
Hermer, one of two Jewish members of Sir Keir Starmer’s Cabinet along with Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, was sworn in yesterday at the Royal Courts of Justice in London.
Emphasising the legal background of the Prime Minister and other leading members of the government, he said: “Governments should be judged by their deeds not by their rhetoric but I hope the professions and the public can take some comfort from the fact that, from the Prime Minister down, the new government is comprised of individuals who have the rule of law imprinted into their DNA, none more so than our new Lord Chancellor [Labour MP and Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood].”
He also heaped praise on the new Solicitor General, Sarah Sackman MP, the new MP for Finchley and Golders Green, who is a member of New North London Synagogue.
Hermer said she, “brings precisely the right mix of legal acumen, political nous and a dedication to public service to help make law and politics work together.”
Sackman was one of five MPs who were first elected in the recent general election and appointed as ministers.
Sackman, who was also sworn in as Solicitor General, posted on Twitter that it was “a huge honour... Standing with the Lord Chancellor @ShabanaMahmood and Attorney General Richard Hermer KC, we reaffirmed our commitment to protect the rule of law and advise the Government as it serves the public”.
Hermer, who in 2023 opposed the last Conservative government’s anti-BDS legislation, last year told the JC that he came from a “Blue-Box Jewish family” and "actively supports a range of Jewish and Israeli organisations”.
He added, “I have dear family members currently serving in the IDF. I also happen to believe (again completely unconnected to my professional analysis on the Bill) that the continued Israeli occupation of the West Bank is unlawful, deeply damaging to the interests of Israel and wholly contrary to the values of tikkun olam that I grew up with and continue to guide me."
