House of Commons to debate Legal Aid reform proposals
10/12/10
Karen Buck MP, the Labour Member of Parliament for Westminster North has been allocated an adjournment debate on Tuesday 14th December 9.30 - 11 am at Westminster Hall, the House of Commons. The subject is 'Legal Aid'. The proposed reforms to legal aid, laid out in the recent government green paper, Proposals for the Reform of Legal Aid in England and Wales will be under discussion.
Carol Storer of the The Legal Aid Practitioners Group (LAPG) yesterday described this as "an opportunity to inform MPs about the issues in the Green Paper and how it will affect their constituents".
Legal aid firms across England and Wales - including Switalskis - have joined the LAPG's campaign to raise awareness of amongst MPs of how the proposed reforms might impact on many of their constituents. Lawyers across the country are writing to their local MPs, encouraging them to attend Tuesday's adjournment debate, and to support the campaign.
A central concern amongst legal aid lawyers is that the reforms could lead to significantly reduced access to justice for some sectors of society - what the Law Society has described as the 'squeezed middle'.
Whilst the proposals will ensure the poorest of the poor remain eligible for public funding to assist with legal expenses in some areas, the proposal that eligibility criteria for legal aid will become more stringent could mean that some people who currently qualify for legal aid will become ineligible.
Firms also fear that the proposed reduced level of fixed fees could force some firms out of the legal aid sector altogether, creating 'advice deserts' in some areas.
Michael Kennedy, Partner of Switalskis Solicitors, said: "All at Switalskis are deeply concerned at the government's proposal to hollow out the provision of civil legal aid".
A Ministry of Justice consultation on the proposed reforms is ongoing. Details are at: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/legal-aid-reform-151110.htm.
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