Overview

• Robert Jenrick accused Lord Hermer of spending his career defending enemies of Britain by representing Gerry Adams, Shamima Begum and al-Qaeda-linked terrorists.
• He challenged Hermer’s invocation of the cab-rank rule, arguing that as a leading human rights barrister he could have declined the most contentious cases.
• Legal commentators note the cab-rank principle contains exceptions that allow barristers to refuse work on grounds like professional embarrassment.
• Hermer faced sharp backlash and issued an apology after likening calls to quit the European Convention on Human Rights to the early days of Nazi Germany.
• Conservative figures including Kemi Badenoch and Chris Philp have joined Jenrick’s call, intensifying pressure on Starmer to remove his Attorney General.