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Cherie must resign over her diaries, says judge
Last updated at 11:44am on 15.05.08
Revealing: Cherie has written a tell-all book
Critic: Gerald Butler QC hit out at Cherie Booth
Cherie Blair should be sacked from the judiciary over her memoirs, a former senior judge said today.
She is accused of bringing the legal profession into disrepute with her autobiography, which contains indiscreet revelations about figures from the Queen to Bill Clinton. In one excerpt from Speaking For Myself, she says her youngest son Leo was conceived because she was too embarrassed to take contraception to Balmoral.
Mrs Blair, known as Cherie Booth professionally, is a QC and a recorder - a barrister appointed to serve as a parttime judge. The £1m she is reported to have received for her memoirs far exceeds her earnings as a publicly funded barrister. In the 12 months to April last year she earned less than £70,000 as a legal aid QC and a judge.
Gerald Butler QC, who was senior justice at Southwark Crown Court for 13 years, said: "I don't think she should continue to sit as a recorder. If she wants to tread this path of making money by outrageous comments that is up to her, but I don't think this is a job for a judge. It shows a complete lack of any kind of decency. It's the kind of conduct which demeans the legal profession. It is disgraceful, but nothing less than I would expect from her."
John Cooper, a senior criminal barrister who sits on the Bar Council, did not want to comment on the claims against Mrs Blair, but said: "One of the important factors in being a judge is being able to exercise judgment, and part of that judgment is being trusted with confidential material. One has to be very careful, in my view, in what one exposes to the public gaze. I know of no High Court judge who has written their memoirs before they have retired."
Mrs Blair, 53, was unavailable for comment today, but her publisher rejected the criticism. A spokeswoman for Little, Brown, said: "This is complete nonsense from someone who has not read the book. There is so much more to Cherie Blair's autobiography than is apparent from the headlines of the past week."
A spokesman for the Bar Standards Board, which regulates barristers' conduct, said:
"This issue has not been raised with us."
Reader views (17)
Here's a sample of the latest views published. You can click view all to read all views that readers have sent in.
With the history of Cherie's judgement, who can be serious about this woman? Don't buy the book, it's only glorified gossip and well paid gossip comes to it!
- Clair, Cambridgshire
I find Ann and Johns idea that Cherie Booth has the right to say or do as she chooses but lets give this a thought. Cherie Booth whilst pulling her husbands strings put a stop to people in this country having freedom of speech unless what was said was in complete agreement with their policies and ideas. So no, let her live like the rest of us and have no freedom of speech!
- Mark, Doncaster
What has she ever done for this country.
- Steve, Wales
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