What we want

Justice for All believes current cost cutting plans will damage access to justice. We call on the Government to:

Ensure advice on social welfare issues remains available.

Legal aid reforms propose severely limiting advice on welfare benefits, employment, housing and debt. Legal aid reforms propose scrapping most of the advice on welfare benefits,
employment, housing and debt – saving just 2.5 per cent of the legal aid budget - yet cutting this service would leave thousands without the help they need.

Cut bureaucracy before front-line services

The administration costs for the legal aid scheme have spiralled to £134 million. Legal aid advisers have to spend unreasonable amounts of time form-filling, rather than helping the people who need advice.
The Government is committed to reduce these administration costs. Justice for All wants to see more progress in this before front-line services are cut.

Ensure tribunals are fair and equal for everyone.

The Government proposals suggest people on the lowest incomes do not need legal advice or representation for tribunals. Yet those who can afford it are able to bring large legal teams. This is unfair.

Improve alternatives to legal processes, instead of cutting legal help

The Government proposals suggest many disputes could be resolved through mediation, instead of the courts funded by legal aid. Mediation must be more widely available, but only where safe and appropriate, and promoted at an earlier stage to make this work.

Simple processes people can manage themselves for legal agreements, like divorce, should be made more widely available too.

Justice for All believes that the current Government proposals implemented without these important safeguards would:

Risk leaving vulnerable people with no access to free, independent, quality advice.

The Ministry of Justice proposes a number of alternatives to legal aid funding – but these are not suitable, available or affordable for the most vulnerable.

• Telephone advice can’t replace face-to-face.
• Legal costs insurance won’t reach the poorest.
• Voluntary sector advice agencies can’t fill the gaps – their other funding is also being cut.
• Pro bono services can’t deal with the most complex problems – they don’t have the specialism or time to deal with these cases.

Budget cuts will make the distance people have to travel to get the right type of advice even longer and impossible to travel for the most desperate.

Cut the best value-for-money legal advice;

Preventative and early advice is being cut in many areas, particularly debt, yet this can save £10 for every £1 invested. Limiting the issues advisers can help with means they will not be able to solve people’s problems fully.

Cost more in bureaucracy;

Proposals which insist on assessing everyone’s eligibility in full, even those on income support, will cost more money in administration – and risks delaying getting people the help they need.

Proposals to introduce price competition in providing legal aid advice will be even more complicated to administer.