§ Mr. Keith HillTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department on how many occasions the decision to grant an emergency legal aid certificate by a solicitor's practice with devolved powers under a legal aid franchise has subsequently been overruled by a legal aid area office in each of the last five years. [10437]
§ Mr. StreeterThe number of occasions on which a legal aid area office has overruled the decision of a franchised solicitor to use their desolved powers to grant emergency civil legal aid is given below. Also given is the number of occasions on which the terms of the grant decisions was amended by the area office.
Year Overruled decisions Amended decisions August 1994 to March 1995 62 61 April 1995 to March 1996 197 185 April 1996 to December 1996 365 261 Franchising was introduced in August 1994.