HL Deb 18 February 2003 vol 644 cc168-9WA
Lord Marlesford

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by Baroness Scotland of Asthal on 28 May 2002 (WA 138), whether they will update the table to show the amount paid out for legal aid in each month, indicating for each month how much was paid out for legal aid in asylum cases. [HL1355]

Baroness Scotland of Asthal

The figures requested, to December 2002, are shown in the table below. 'The Legal Services Commission is unable to differentiate asylum from wider immigration cases but the majority of cases listed are thought to be asylum. All figures provided are provisional estimates and may be subject to year-end adjustments.

The reason for the increased legal aid expenditure is that the number of asylum cases processed has substantially increased. Bills are paid after asylum applications have been processed so we are only now paying for work done in previous years.

Month/Year Immigration and Asylum Legal Aid Expenditure (£ million) Total Legal Aid Expenditure (Civil and Criminal (£ million)
April 2002 13.1 160
May 2002 12.4 144
June 2002 12.6 147
July 2002 14.0 159
August 2002 14.1 163
September 2002 11.8 145
October 2002 16.3 182
November 2002 13.9 162
December 2002 14.2 152