§ Mr. RuaneTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will set out, with statistical information relating as directly as possible to the Vale of Clwyd constituency, the effects on the Vale of Clwyd of the Lord Chancellor's Department's policies since May 1997. [151933]
§ Mr. LockThe Lord Chancellor?s Department is responsible for the administration of the courts and for legal services. We have taken steps to improve the management and effectiveness of the services we provide and to meet customer needs, including working closely with other agencies to provide a fair, swift and effective system of justice, improve the availability of affordable and good quality legal services and to improve the lives of children and help build and sustain strong families.
The Vale of Clwyd is covered by Denbighshire Community Legal Service Partnership (CLSP). There are currently 165 CLSPs throughout England and Wales. Fifteen of these are based in Wales.
Within Denbighshire 10 solicitor firms and two not-for-profit organisations have been awarded contracts whose total value amounts to over £273,000. The contracts cover a range of categories, including family, debt, housing and welfare benefits.
214WEleven of the organisations are based within the Vale of Clwyd constituency area and predominantly provide services to residents covered by the towns of Rhyl and Denbigh. Although one provider, South Denbighshire CAB, is based outside the Vale of Clwyd, its services can still be accessed by people living within the Vale of Clwyd.
All 12 organisations above are holders of the Community Legal Service Quality Mark. In addition, the award of a specialist level Quality Mark is imminent for the Welfare Rights Unit at Denbighshire County Council, and should be issued no later than May 2001. North Denbighshire CAB has submitted an application at the General Help level and is due to be audited at the beginning of April 2001.