§ Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what estimate he has made of the number of people in each of the next five years who will be ineligible for legal aid who were previously eligible. [87557]
§ Mr. VazThe financial eligibility limits are increased each year in line with other welfare benefits. While there are no formal estimates for future years, we expect that eligibility for civil legal aid will remain at or near its present level. Nothing in the Access to Justice Bill itself will change the position on financial eligibility. However, the Government intend to consult on a number of possible changes to the financial criteria. One of these would be to increase the number of people eligible for advice and assistance, to bring it back into line with that for representation in litigation.
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