Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the decision by the High Court that the Government's proposals for legal aid involving mesothelioma proceedings were not lawfully made, what plans the Government has to initiate a further review.

Legal aid for personal injury claims including mesothelioma was withdrawn by the last Government in April 2000 as conditional fee agreements (CFAs) were available. This Government has since reformed the way in which CFAs operate, but its decision to apply those reforms to mesothelioma cases was recently overturned by the High Court. The Government is considering the way forward in the light of that judgment.