§ Mr. G. Thomasasked the Attorney-General whether he will appoint a medical man to serve on each local tribunal which decides whether to grant legal aid in cases where hospital authorities are being sued.
The Attorney-GeneralNo. Applications for legal aid to take proceedings against hospitals for negligence are, in practice, supported by medical opinions. The appointment of a medically qualified member would not enable the Certifying Committee to dispense with this evidence and, as he would not have seen the applicant, he would not be able to add to it. My noble Friend the Lord Chancellor does not therefore consider that there is any need to amend Section 8 (4) of the Legal Aid and Advice Act, 1949, which provides that members of Certifying Committees must be barristers or solicitors.