Gary Crothers
The House of Lords had a late night on Monday as Peers spent eight hours debating the Government’s bill to cut legal aid. The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill had its second reading in the upper chamber on 21st November. 42 Peers spoke about legal aid and all of these (barring the Minister) were against the proposals.
The bill sets out Government plans to cut legal aid for many areas of law. The proposals include removing legal aid for debt cases, except those at crisis point when your home is at immediate risk. The bill would cut free help for family cases that do not involve domestic violence. Other areas such as benefits, employment and clinical negligence will be removed from the scope of legal aid altogether.
