Baroness Scotland of Asthal, PC, QC
Baroness Scotland was born in the Commonwealth of Dominica
as the tenth child of twelve. Her family moved to Walthamstow when
she was two years old. She attended the Walthamstow School for
Girls. She is a Roman Catholic. She was educated at Mid Essex
Technical College in Chelmsford where she pursued a London
University (LLB) law degree in 1976 (in association with University
College London). She was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in
1977, specialising in family and children's law. Baroness Scotland
made history in 1991 by becoming the first black woman to be
appointed a Queen's Counsel. She later founded 1 Gray's Inn Square
barristers chambers. Early in 1997 she was elected as a Bencher of
the Middle Temple. Scotland was named as a Millennium Commissioner
on 17 February 1994, and was a member of the Commission for Racial
Equality. She received a life peerage on a Labour Party list of
working peers in 1997.
From 1999 to 2001 Baroness Scotland was the Parliamentary
Under-Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
where she was inter alia, responsible for the UK Government's
diplomatic relations with North America, the Caribbean, Overseas
Territories, Consular Division, British Council, administration and
all Parliamentary business in the House of Lords. Baroness Scotland
notably introduced the International Criminal Court Bill which
sought to ratify the jurisdiction of the International Criminal
Court into UK law. She established the Pro Bono Lawyers Panel, a
panel of British-based lawyers who provided legal advice on a pro
bono basis to United Kingdom nationals imprisoned in foreign
countries. She created an Overseas Territories Council for the
Caribbean and reformed and restructured the Foreign and
Commonwealth Office's Consular Division to be able to respond more
effectively to emergencies and disasters abroad such as the 11
September attacks.
In 2001 she became Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's
Department, and was made a member of the Privy Council of the
United Kingdom. She was the Minister responsible for civil justice
and the reform of civil law including the comprehensive reform of
land registration leading to the Land Registration Act 2002. She
was also responsible for international affairs at the Lord
Chancellor’s Department and was appointed by Prime Minister Tony
Blair as the UK Alternate Representative to the European Convention
and was given primary responsibility for the negotiations in
relation to the Charter of Rights which were successfully concluded
in 2003. During this period she consolidated the strong relations
created with all the applicant countries through the FAHR programme
and the Member States and was subsequently awarded the Polish Medal
for her contribution to the reform and development of Law in
Poland.
Baroness Scotland was a contender for a cabinet position in
2003, when Prime Minister Blair reportedly considered appointing
her Leader of the House of Lords.
In 2003 Baroness Scotland was made Minister of State for the
Criminal Justice system and Law Reform at the Home Office and
deputy to the Home Secretary. She served in that post until 2007
under three Home Secretaries: David Blunkett, Charles Clarke and
John Reid. Whilst at the Home Office she was responsible for major
reform of the criminal justice system. She created the Office of
Criminal Justice Reform which helped to create and support the
National Criminal Justice Board and the Local Criminal Justice
Board. Having acted as Chair, she then created three Alliances to
reduce re-offending (Corporate, Civic and Faith based Alliance) and
the Corporate Alliance against Domestic Violence. She created an
advisory group on victims and the Criminal Justice Centre, Victims
and Witness units.
Baroness Scotland created Inside Justice Week and the Justice
Awards. She introduced the Crime and Victims Act which created new
offence of familial homicide which was successfully used to
prosecute the killers of Baby P who would otherwise have escaped
responsibility for his death. By 2009, domestic violence in the UK
had been reduced by 64%. The domestic violence homicide rate had
been significantly reduced and crime was at its lowest since
1991.
Baroness Scotland continued her responsibility for international
affairs at the Home Office and continued to represent the UK in a
number of difficult and challenging international negotiations such
as those relating to extradition.
In 2004 Baroness Scotland was considered to be a possible
candidate to become a Commissioner of the European Union.
On 28 June 2007 Baroness Scotland was appointed Attorney General
by Prime Minister Gordon Brown. She was the first woman to hold the
office since its foundation in 1315. As Attorney General she was
the Chief legal adviser to: Her Majesty the Queen, Parliament and
the Government, Supervisor and Superintendent of the Prosecutorial
Authorities (SFO,CPS, RCPO), Leader of the Bar and had
non-statutory oversight of the prosecutors in government
departments, the Treasury Solicitors Department and armed services
prosecuting authority. She was Guardian of the Rule of Law and
Public Interest. She was one of the three Cabinet Ministers
responsible for the Criminal Justice system and had specific
responsibility for fraud policy and the National Fraud Authority
and chaired the Inter-Ministerial Group responsible for the
improvement of the response to fraud and e-crime.
She was instrumental in creating the Quintet which brought
together the Attorneys General of USA, Canada, Australia and New
Zealand to consider issues of joint legal and systemic concern.
During her time as Attorney General, Baroness Scotland continued to
promote pro bono work by lawyers and created an international and
Schools Pro Bono Committee which was responsible for co-ordinating
pro bono work. She created the Pro Bono Awards and Pro Bono Heroes.
She also created an Attorney General's Youth Network.
She was the last Attorney General for England and Wales also to
be the Attorney General for Northern Ireland before the devolution
of justice powers to the Northern Ireland Assembly, and the
appointment of a separate Attorney General for Northern
Ireland.
When Labour left government on 11 May 2010, Baroness Scotland
became the Shadow Attorney General and was reappointed to that role
by Ed Miliband when he appointed his first Shadow Cabinet in
October 2010.
Baroness Scotland is the Patron of the Corporate Alliance
Against Domestic Violence. She is the joint Patron of Missio, a
charity which is the Catholic Church’s official support
organisation for overseas mission.
Baroness Scotland has been voted Peer of the Year by Channel 4,
the House Magazine, Parliamentarian of the Year by the Spectator
and the Political Studies Association, and received a number of
other awards for her contribution to law reform in the UK and
abroad.
Baroness Scotland was awarded an Honorary Degree from the
University of East London in 2005. She was voted one of the 100
Great Black Britons.
Baroness Scotland was decreed and invested by Prince Carlo, Duke
of Castro, as a Dame of Merit with Star of the Sacred Military
Constantinian Order of St George in 2003