§ Mr. EtheringtonTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will review the adequacy of provision of and access to legal information and help services for asylum seekers and refugees living in Sunderland and Newcastle; and if he will make a statement. [127232]
§ Mr. LockThe Legal Services Commission has awarded seven contracts in the immigration category of law, both to solicitors and not-for-profit organisations, in the Sunderland and Newcastle area.
The Commission is aware that there is at present an increase in need due to the dispersal of asylum seekers to the North East Region. It has taken immediate steps to ensure that legal advice is available by making arrangements for suppliers from outside the region to travel to provide the necessary help.
The Government have already increased remuneration rates for immigration and have allocated an additional £23 million of resources to the Commission for asylum work.
The Commission is now in the process of implementing a package to improve the availability of sufficient quality legal representatives for asylum seekers dispersed throughout the country. As part of this, the Commission is looking at the way in which payments are made to immigration practitioners and how cash-flow could be improved.
Addressing payment regimes, along with the funding of training programmes around the country and a range of other measures, will increase expertise and encourage existing firms to expand and new firms to enter this important area of work.