On Thursday 12 June 2025, the IPT were delighted to take a cross-party group of parliamentarians to the Supreme Court. The visit was attended by Sir Julian Smith MP, Ben Lake MP, Andy McDonald MP, Kim Johnson MP, Johanna Baxter MP, Richard Baker MP, Kevin Bonavia MP, Alice Macdonald MP, Phil Brickell MP, Pam Cox MP, and John Milne MP.

The visit began with a tour of the court which was formerly the Middlesex Guildhall, a new creation, the Supreme Court has only sat within this building since 2009. The Supreme Court has multiple court rooms, allowing them to listen to multiple cases simultaneously, and we got to see the main room, court room one. This is where some of the flagship cases will be heard. At this point MPs got to ask the tour guide questions about how the court works, the cases they have heard and what its role is.

We then moved to the library which is housed in the former council chamber of the guildhall. In this room Justices and legal professionals prepare for cases and utilise the literature they have available. The court is open to the public, so they explained how people are allowed to enter at any point and witness a case hearing take place or tour the courthouse.From here, we entered the chambers where we heard from the Chief Executive about the work they are doing to improve diversity, outreach, and modernise the court’s operations from changing their technology systems so they are now effectively paperless. MPs then participated in a Q&A with one of the Justices, Lady Rose, who has been on the court since 2021. She discussed her career and how she became a justice. The role that she plays on the court and the pressures faced, but also the opportunities and passion that she has for her profession.

We would like to thank the Supreme Court for hosting this visit, to Lady Rose for taking the time to speak to MPs and to all of the Parliamentarians who attended.