Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she has taken to increase provision of legal aid in (a) Lincolnshire and (b) the East Midlands.

This Government recognises that legal aid is a vital part of the justice system. It enables those individuals, who need it most, to have access to publicly funded legal assistance in order to uphold their legal rights.

We have recently consulted on uplifts to housing and immigration legal aid fees which would inject an additional £20 million into the sector each year once implemented.

In December 2024, we announced that criminal legal aid solicitors will receive up to £92 million more a year, subject to consultation, to support the sustainability of the criminal legal aid market. The consultation is now live and closes on 4 July 2025. This funding is in addition to the £24 million increase we announced in November 2024 for criminal solicitors. This latest commitment reflects the vital work that is undertaken by those who provide criminal legal aid. We are committed to continuing to work with the criminal legal aid profession, on further opportunities to support the overall sustainability, diversity, and efficiency of the system.

The Legal Aid Agency is responsible for commissioning legal aid services in England and Wales. Procurement for legal aid contracts is now operated under the ‘always on principle’ so that the procurement remains open during the life of the contract. This is a significant change from the previous approach where firms could only bid to join at the initial tender of what typically was a five-year contract term. This new approach enables new entrants to apply for a contract at any time and for existing providers to expand their services. It is a more flexible approach, removing hard deadlines and maximising the available supply of services.

There is currently an adequate supply of services in Lincolnshire and the East Midlands across all categories of civil legal aid, and under the relevant criminal duty solicitor schemes serving the area.