Legal Aid (Hansard, 17 January 1995)

§ Mr. Boateng
To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to improve the accounting system at the Legal Aid Board so that it provides a more detailed statistical breakdown of the relative costs of different types of case.

Mr. John M. Taylor
The Legal Aid Board is currently developing new information systems which will, among other things, provide a more detailed breakdown of the costs of different types of case.

§ Mr. Boateng
To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what(a) classes of plaintiff and (b) types of case which currently qualify for legal aid the Lord Chancellor envisages making ineligible for legal aid in the future; and how much public expenditure he expects to save with such measures.

Mr. John M. Taylor
The Lord Chancellor does not envisage removing either classes of plaintiff or types case from the scope of the legal aid scheme in the future. Under new proposals on which he will be consulting later in the year, it may be that, because of greater emphasis on assessments of local needs and priorities, some individual cases brought under the present system might not be brought. However, the proposals should mean that more people are assisted under legal aid than at present because of a more effective use of resources.

§ Mr. Boateng
To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when he expects to publish a report on the results of the pilot projects in the use of citizens advice bureaux, law centres and other advice agencies as a means of dispensing legally aided services currently being undertaken in conjunction with the Legal Aid Board.

Mr. John M. Taylor
The Legal Aid Board expects to publish the results of its non-solicitor agencies franchising pilot in the spring of 1996.
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§ Mr. Boateng
To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what costing analysis he has done of the proposals for the reform of the legal aid system announced at the Social Market Foundation on 11 January; and when he expects to publish this analysis.

Mr. John M. Taylor
In his speech to the Social Market Foundation, the Lord Chancellor made it plain that he was outlining his preliminary ideas in advance of a more detailed consultation paper. No costings, therefore, have as yet been done.

§ Mr. Boateng
To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what percentage of the total civil legal aid budget is currently deployed through citizens advice bureaux, law centres and other such advice centres.

Mr. John M. Taylor
In 1993–94, the last complete financial year, £4.8 million was paid to law centres, citizens advice bureaux and other independent advice agencies in respect of work carried out under the legal aid scheme. This represents 0.3 per cent. of the gross amount expended on legal aid in that year.