§ Mr. Berminghamasked the Attorney-General on what basis the figure of 70 per cent. of households qualifying for legal aid, mentioned on page 9 of the recent White Paper on legal aid, was calculated; what proportion of households has been covered by the legal aid scheme for each year since 1979; and if the basis of calculation has been changed at any time over the past eight years.
§ The Attorney-GeneralIt is not possible to calculate with precision the percentage of the population eligible for legal aid. The figure of 70 per cent., which has remained broadly constant throughout the past eight years, is an estimate only. It is based on a comparison between the qualifying levels of income for legal aid for different compositions of households and figures published by the Department of Employment for household incomes. This method has been used throughout the last eight years.