Justice: Legal Advice

Lord Naseby Excerpts

Monday 11th March 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord McNally]

My Lords, we are working on some of these issues. We are working with the judiciary to improve guidelines for people representing themselves in court. We are developing a new online information service to help people find out if they are eligible for legal aid or signpost them to other services. We are giving £65 million of funding to help not-for-profit social welfare advice providers to adapt and transition over the next two years. We are also encouraging innovations in the legal services market, such as the provision of lower-cost advice services to help people in resolving their problems.

[Lord Naseby]

My Lords, how can anybody make a useful assessment in such a short time as there is from now to the changes? Should we not recognise that great trouble has been taken over these proposed changes? In a very tight financial situation, has not the time come to see what happens and then, if necessary, make changes one way or the other?

[Lord McNally]

I thank my noble friend for that question. It is true that the noble Lord, Lord Bach, has made something of a cottage industry of—