Asked by: Elsie Blundell (Labour - Heywood and Middleton North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to ensure legal aid is accessible to people using the family courts in the North West.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
With regards to scope, in private family proceedings, legal aid is available for matters such as child arrangements, financial remedy proceedings and divorce if an individual is a victim of domestic abuse or is at risk of being abused.
Legal aid is also available in certain private family proceedings if a child is a victim of child abuse or at risk of abuse. Funding is subject to providing the required evidence of domestic abuse or child abuse as specified in legal aid legislation and meeting the relevant merits and financial eligibility criteria.
A financial eligibility waiver is available for victims of domestic abuse applying for protective injunctions, such as non-molestation orders, which means they can receive legal aid even if they would not otherwise pass the means test, though they may be required to pay a financial contribution towards their legal costs.
In public family proceedings, means-free legal aid is available for parents, those with parental responsibility, and children in public family law special Children Act’s cases, including care proceedings and adoption proceedings under the Children Act 1989 as well as in related proceedings.
Legal aid funded services are provided by independent organisations who hold contracts to carry out legal aid work. The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) is responsible for the commissioning and procurement of these contracts. The LAA is satisfied that there is adequate supply of family law services in the North West of England.
Asked by: Elsie Blundell (Labour - Heywood and Middleton North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to expedite the judicial process for those charged with domestic abuse offences.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
As part of our landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, we are committed to strengthening the justice system’s response to domestic abuse.
Decisions on case listing are a matter for the independent judiciary, who do, where possible, look to prioritise cases involving vulnerable victims and witnesses, such as victims of domestic abuse.
Most domestic abuse cases are heard in Magistrates’ Courts where cases move more swiftly than at the Crown Court. Despite this, we recognise that some cases are taking longer to work through the system. We are actively exploring the merits of specialist court models and have committed to fast-track rape cases through the Crown Court.
In November, we launched the Domestic Abuse Protection Order (DAPO) pilot to provide more protection for victims and we have also committed to introduce domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms.
Asked by: Elsie Blundell (Labour - Heywood and Middleton North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent discussions she has had with officials in Greater Manchester on taking steps to protect victims of domestic abuse.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This Government was elected with a landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls in the next decade. We will use every tool within our power to target perpetrators and address the root causes of abuse and violence, including domestic abuse. For instance, in November, we launched Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPOs) in selected areas including Greater Manchester, to provide more protection for victims. Working closely with all our delivery partners in the Greater Manchester area has been critical to the successful pilot launch in this area, and we engage regularly with Greater Manchester Central Authority via our Greater Manchester DAPO Local Partner Steering Group.