Oral Answers to Questions

Janet Daby Excerpts

Tuesday 23rd April 2019 Commons Chamber

[Teresa Pearce (Erith and Thamesmead) (Lab)]

7. What steps he is taking to increase access to the criminal justice system.

[Janet Daby (Lewisham East) (Lab)]

20. What steps he is taking to increase access to the criminal justice system.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Lucy Frazer)]

It is vital that our criminal justice system remains fair and accessible, and we are taking a number of steps to ensure justice within it. Legal aid is a very important part of that process, and last year we spent almost £900 million on criminal legal aid alone. However, our court system also needs to be modern and up to date, so we are spending £1 billion on technology to bring our court system up to date for the 21st century.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lucy Frazer]

Doing a review and putting in £23 million are specific steps to ensure that we get better justice. I am very grateful to the Law Society, which the hon. Lady and the hon. Member for Ealing, Southall (Mr Sharma) mentioned, because it is actively engaged in our review, as are the Bar Council and the Criminal Bar Association.

[Janet Daby]

It is really good to hear that the Law Society is having such an impact on the Government. However, the Law Society has also published research that shows that the criminal legal aid means test is preventing families living in poverty from accessing justice. Although the Government will eventually review this, the review will not conclude until 2020, and it will be even further down the line when any changes come into place. Will the Minister therefore commit to taking action now to ensure that vulnerable people are still able to access justice?

[Lucy Frazer]

I am very pleased that the hon. Lady has highlighted that we have already committed to doing a review of the threshold for legal aid across the board, not just in relation to criminal law but civil law as well. It is very important that we get that review right. Legal aid has not been uprated for a number of years. We have committed to doing that, but not only that—we have already started the review.