HC Deb 23 June 1997 vol 296 cc619-20
31. Mr. Baker

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when he expects to bring forward proposals to make the legal system more accessible to potential users. [3117]

Mr.Hoon

The Lord Chancellor has invited Sir Peter Middleton to review current proposals for reform of the civil justice and legal aid systems. He is to produce a preliminary report by September. The Government recognise the challenge in reforming legal aid provision—not only is the cost of legal aid escalating, but the percentage of households eligible for it has fallen. We are determined to create a system that achieves value for money for the taxpayer and high quality advice for the consumer.

Mr. Baker

Does the Minister agree that the most important purpose of any review must be to ensure that everyone has access to justice in the courts and that people are not prevented from seeking it by how much money they have in their pockets? That must come before any cost-effective review that the Government undertake.

Will the Minister also take the opportunity to confirm or deny the story on the front page of the Daily Mail today, which claims that legal aid will be abolished? I do not always believe that paper, but that is what it says on its front page. If he is unable to deny that suggestion, will he refute the idea of moves towards state-salaried solicitors, who would obviously not be independent of the Government?

Mr. Hoon

The hon. Gentleman has asked a number of questions about legal aid, as he did at our previous Question Time, and tabled a number of written questions. I therefore thought that it might be instructive to examine precisely the hon. Gentleman's party's policy contribution on the subject. I have carefully scrutinised the Liberal Democrat manifesto which was issued before 1 May 1997. I must tell the hon. Gentleman that his party made no mention whatever of any kind of policy on legal aid. I hope that it will not be testing his party too much to invite it to develop such a policy, perhaps between now and the middle of September, so that Sir Peter Middleton and his colleagues might have the benefit of its suggestions on how we should tackle the problems associated with civil legal aid.

Mr. Streeter

Is the Minister aware of the deep disappointment felt by many at the delay in introducing the Woolf reforms, which is due simply to the decision to allow time for yet another Labour review? When, oh when, will this Government stop reviewing and start deciding?

Mr. Hoon

On the contrary: the Lord Chancellor has made it clear that he supports the spirit of Lord Woolf's recommendations. The Labour party made it clear in its manifesto before the general election that it was necessary to consider the proposals in the Woolf report and those on legal aid together. We did not believe, unlike, apparently, the Conservative party, that it was possible to deal with those issues separately. That is why Sir Peter Middleton will conduct a review of the civil justice reforms and those of legal aid simultaneously.