A senior judge has been asked to decide whether female Muslim advocates may wear the veil in court.

The question was referred to Mr Justice Hodge, president of the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal, by an immigration judge at Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, who had difficulty in hearing a veiled legal executive.

Shabnam Mughal was dressed completely in black with a full-face veil leaving only her eyes visible.

The judge, George Glossop, asked Miss Mughal on Monday if she would "kindly remove her veil to assist with communication". He told her: "It will allow me to see your face and I cannot hear you as well as I would like."

She declined to do so and Immigration Judge Glossop briefly adjourned the case. Later in the day, he asked her a second time. When Miss Mughal again refused to remove her veil, the judge adjourned the case until next Monday, pending consultations with Mr Justice Hodge. [Link]