The Home Secretary has no responsibility for the Courts of England and Wales. Unlike many other governments issues usually dealt with by a Department of Justice, the British government has three separate departments: The Home Office (as specified above), the Attorney General's Office and the Ministry of Justice, headed by the Secretary of State for Justice, for legal, judicial and civil rights issues.
Development of other government departments
Because the Home Office was initially the primary government department with responsibility for domestic affairs, all subsequent domestic departments have effectively been created by taking responsibilities from the Home Office. Until 2001 this left a variety of miscellaneous tasks that sat apart from the law and order functions of the department, such as British Summer Time or wild birds in Scotland.[1] However, on the appointment of David Blunkett as Home Secretary, these functions - and others such as responsibility for the Fire Brigade - have been reallocated to other departments to give the position a focus solely on law and order.
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