Did Cherie Blair make those remarks, or didn’t she?

The National Secular Society has spoken out about the lack of transparency in the decision by the Office for Judicial Complaints to absolve Cherie Blair from wrong-doing when she gave a suspended sentence rather than a prison sentence to a defendant reportedly on the basis that he was a “religious man”.

Terry Sanderson, president of the National Secular Society, said: “We hope this episode will serve as a reminder to the judiciary to treat everyone before them equally, regardless of their belief or lack of it, and never to act in a way that might give the perception that this might not be the case. We have not, however, been told anything about how this decision was reached and, after enquiring at the Office for Judicial Complaints, we understand that no details of the enquiry will be made public.

“So the questions remain: did Ms Booth make these remarks or didn’t she? If she did, what did she mean by them? If she didn’t, is she going to take it up with the newspapers who reported them?”

A spokeswoman for the Office for Judicial Complaints said: “That investigation has concluded and found that Recorder Booth's observations did not constitute judicial misconduct. The Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice have considered the conclusions of the investigation and agree that no disciplinary action is necessary.”