Dominic Grieve, a former attorney general, and Edward Garnier, a Conservative peer and former solicitor general, said lawyers should not be attacked for doing their jobs, regardless of who they represent or their personal views.
Senior Tory politicians from Rishi Sunak to the party deputy chairman, Lee Anderson, have blamed "lefty lawyers" for thwarting the government's policies to prevent people crossing the Channel in small boats.
The controversy escalated this week after Tory officials circulated criticism of Labour for having links to Jacqueline McKenzie, a partner at the law firm Leigh Day, who has represented an asylum seeker challenging their deportation to Rwanda. She has since received abuse and said yesterday that people have threatened to drown her "like an asylum seeker" and leave dead bodies at her property.
McKenzie said she was still concerned for her security. "I've had a security company come and take look at our house, and decide to cut down a tree because someone could be hiding in it," she said. "I've had death threats from people who clearly know where I live, with all sorts of abuse including threats to drown me like an asylum seeker or leave their bodies in our driveway because there's so much space.
This story is from the August 12, 2023 edition of The Guardian.
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This story is from the August 12, 2023 edition of The Guardian.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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