§ 27. Mr. Austin Mitchell (Great Grimsby)What proposals he has to increase financial support for law centres. [41279]
§ The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (Mr. Geoffrey Hoon)To deliver the Government's manifesto commitment to create a community legal service, we are seeking to refocus legal aid on social welfare issues. We expect law centres to benefit from that if they are franchised and able to win contracts.
§ Mr. MitchellI am sure that my hon. Friend agrees that law centres are valuable and are the best way of providing good, cost-effective and efficient legal advice 728 for the mass of ordinary people who are being priced out of paying for legal services by escalating costs. As we agree that law centres are to become the kernel of the community legal service that we are committed to providing, is it not necessary now to provide them with more money to expand their number from the present 50 or so towards the 250 envisaged at the end of the war, and to extend the range of legal services that they can provide to fill the gaps in legal aid?
§ Mr. HoonI am grateful to my hon. Friend for his observations. I agree that we should like more money to be made available to law centres, but clearly a prerequisite is that we control the costs of legal aid. We already provide grants to nine law centres and £1.7 million under the green form scheme. If we are to release resources to be made available to law centres, it is important that we are able to control the costs of the traditional legal aid scheme.
§ Mr. Owen Paterson (North Shropshire)What will be gained by making more legal services available to the general public when the need to travel—for example, in Shropshire, where it is proposed to close the court in Shrewsbury—makes access impossible for ordinary people?
§ Mr. HoonNo decisions have yet been taken about the court in Shrewsbury. It is important that there should be a balance between the availability of courts and expense. Courts are expensive capital assets which the Government have to maintain. In supporting courts and making sure that as many people as possible have access to them, we have to ensure that the taxpayer is getting value for money. That balance must be struck.
§ Ms Hazel Blears (Salford)Although law centres are a key element in improving access to justice, many other advice services such as citizens advice bureaux, housing advice centres, welfare rights centres and debt counselling are funded and co-ordinated by local authorities. Will my hon. Friend ensure that, in the shaping of the future of the community legal service, local government plays a key role in ensuring that services are accessible and relevant to local people?
§ Mr. HoonI am grateful to my hon. Friend for that helpful question. Clearly it is crucial that we provide local high-quality legal assistance; indeed, to deliver a community legal service is a manifesto commitment of the Government. We are examining the range of help that may be necessary with issues such as social welfare, benefit advice, debt, housing and employment, and there is a task force in the Lord Chancellor's Department working urgently to develop a range of proposals to enable us to deliver such legal advice where it is most needed, to the most vulnerable people in our society.