New Canadian supreme court judge named

OTTAWA, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper bypassed public hearings and appointed a new Supreme Court judge Monday to fill an 8-month-old vacancy.

In a statement, the Conservative leader said the official opposition party, the Liberals, had welcomed the appointment of Justice Thomas Cromwell of the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal.

"The Supreme Court must have its full complement of nine judges in order to execute its vital constitutional mandate effectively," the statement said."Not only is Justice Cromwell one of Canada's most respected jurists, his appointment will also restore regional balance to the court which now, once again, has an Atlantic Canadian representative."

With Harper's minority government facing the prospect of losing power late in January on a non-confidence vote on the federal budget, Harper also appointed 18 new Conservative senators Monday to fill vacancies.

However, he said politics didn't play a role in Cromwell's appointment.

"The Supreme Court rightly exists above partisan politics and Canadians of all political persuasions will benefit from its return to a full complement of judges," the statement said.

Cromwell replaces Michel Bastarache, who retired at the end of June, the Canwest News Service said.