Roughing It

The Ministry of Justice has reportedly spent a hundred and thirty million smackers on tarting up its new offices. Meanwhile down at the sharp end, it was so cold in my court the other day that I allowed advocates to address the court wearing their outdoor clothing, and one senior magistrate emailed the admin (now known as Mission Control) to threaten that he would call in the Council if matters did not improve rapidly. Unofficially, I have been told that orders have come down to turn down heating across the estate. I'm not sure how they managed that in my courthouse, since the only man who understands the antiquated and temperamental heating and air-con systems was early-retired a year ago, to be replaced by contractors who send along a different team every time.