MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
News Release (156/08) issued by COI News Distribution Service. 4
December 2008
A study into the
funding and provision of local legal advice has been announced by Ministers.
The Government is keen to assess how recent legal aid reforms and
any wider changes to the way in which local advice agencies are
funded, have affected the provision of services. The aim is to
identify, bring together and analyse the available evidence across
England and Wales.
Justice Minister, Lord Bach, has commissioned the study which
will examine:
* The impact of the recession and the demand for
civil legal advice;
* The impact of civil legal advice fixed
fees on local providers - financially and in terms of the type of
work they are taking on;
* The initial experience of Community
Legal Advice Centres, including the impact on other providers in
the area;
* Trends in funding from sources other than the
Community Legal Service, including local authority funding,
national lottery funding, charities, central government
departments, and others.
Lord Bach said:
"Legal aid is one of the fundamental elements underpinning
the justice system and an important way of helping poorer members
of the community. It enables access to justice for those who
cannot afford to pay for legal advice and representation. The
Government aims to get the best value for money from the provision
of these services, so that as many people as possible can be
helped using the available resources."
"The need for legal advice in areas like housing and debt
will inevitably increase in these difficult economic times and the
Government wants to be sure that the best use of existing
resources is being made. This study will improve our understanding
of how legal advice is delivered and funded at the local level and
establish what further information we may need to inform future decisions."
The study will be informed by a steering group consisting of
representatives from various stakeholder groups. Lord Bach will
chair the group.
Notes to editors:
1. Membership of the steering group will be
announced shortly.
2. The group will submit its report in March.
3. The value of legal aid contracts that have been awarded to the
Not for Profit sector by the Legal Services Commission has
increased from almost £48 million in 2002/03 to £80 million last year.
4. This has enabled the sector to provide legal aid to an
increasing number of people and last year over 250,000 of the
800,000 acts of advice and assistance were delivered by Not for
Profit agencies.
http://www.justice.gov.uk