Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to improve access to legal aid.

This Government is delivering significant fee uplifts to legal aid, with the first civil fee increases in almost 30 years and up to £92 million extra each year for criminal legal aid. This will support a more stable and sustainable legal aid sector, helping to ensure effective access to justice for some of the most vulnerable in our society.

In December 2024, we announced that criminal legal aid solicitors will receive up to £92 million more a year, to help support the sustainability of the criminal legal aid sector including prison law. Prior to that, in November 2024, we announced our response to the Crime Lower consultation, confirming an uplift to the lowest police station fees, introducing a new Youth Court fee scheme, and paying for travel in certain circumstances. Together, these changes amounted to a £24 million investment for criminal legal aid providers.

In civil legal aid, we recently published ‘Civil Legal Aid: Towards a sustainable future’ confirming that we will increasing fees for all housing & debt, and immigration & asylum legal aid work. This is a significant investment of £20 million a year. Providers will see significant increases in all fees, with the overall spending in these categories increasing by 24% for housing work and 30% for immigration work.