Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the Law Society's online survey of individuals' handling of legal issues in England and Wales 2015, published in May 2016.

The legal profession in England and Wales is independent from government. We want to see an innovative and competitive market that provides people with affordable legal services that they want and need, with regulation that supports the public and consumer interest.

We welcome the Law Society’s survey and will take account of the findings as part of the development of legal services policy.

The legal services regulators have a duty to promote the regulatory objectives set out in the Legal Services Act 2007, including improving access to justice and increasing public understanding of the citizen's legal rights and duties. The regulators have established the “Legal Choices” website, which provides people with information to help them in deciding whether and how to seek legal advice and the available services they might choose from. The Advicenow website, established by Law for Life, provides information on rights and the law.