Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of his decision not to include (a) eligibility and (b) fees as part of his review of civil legal aid.

The Ministry of Justice is currently undertaking a Review of Civil Legal Aid to identify evidence-based options for moving to a more effective, efficient, and sustainable system for legal aid providers and the people who rely on legal aid.

The Review will consider the civil legal aid system in its entirety: how services are procured, how well the current system works for users, how civil legal aid impacts the wider justice system, and whether the civil legal aid system offers a financially viable business option for legal aid providers. It will also consider the overall fee structures of the civil legal aid system. The scope of legal aid is not within the Review’s remit.

In the interim, we are continuing to make improvements across the sector to ensure legal aid is available to those who need it. From 1 August 2023, the scope of legal aid was expanded, enabling people facing the loss of their home to receive early legal advice on housing, debt, and welfare benefits issues as well as representation in court. This means an increase in funding of up to £10m each year.

In addition, we recently laid secondary legislation to bring Special Guardianship Orders brought in private law proceedings within scope of legal aid, injecting a further £13m into family legal aid per year. We have also broadened the evidence requirements for victims of domestic abuse applying for legal aid, making it easier for victims to evidence their claims. This will deliver on our commitments to support victims of domestic abuse and allow special guardians to access legal aid.

Eligibility for legal aid was considered in the Legal Aid Means Test Review. The Ministry of Justice published the Government Response to the Review’s consultation exercise in May 2023, which set out the detailed policy decisions underpinning the new means-testing arrangements. When implemented, we estimate that spending on legal aid will rise by circa £25 million. This will increase the number of people eligible for civil legal aid in England and Wales by an additional 2.5 million.