Essential Reading - what a working Labour peer gets up to in a week

Willy has sent us his diary for the past week.  It's top of the page list on the right (well, even this page has to have a right as well as a left).  Fascinating reading.  Thanks, Willy.

Legal Aid Cuts

Willy Bach on the latest government driven assault on legal aid funding
    

 "Anti-social, and crude with it"

Today in the Lords, I will ask the Legal Aid Minister, Lord McNally, why the Legal Services Commisssion (LSC) has decided to cease funding the Advice Services Alliance (ASA), the Law Centre Network (LCN), and the Royal Courts of Justice (RCJ) Citizens’ Advice Bureau (CAB) from 1st April this year. The total loss will be just over £650,000 per year, and obviously will affect all three organisations to a serious degree.

It needs to be emphasised right away that all three of these bodies enjoy the highest respect from all who work in our legal system – at whatever level. It is accepted that the work they have done for many years has been of huge and lasting value to many thousands of citizens faced with legal problems. It is obvious too that they would not have been able to perform in this way if it wasn’t for government funding grants, given without pause over a long period of time – 33 years in the case of LCN.

Taking them briefly, one by one:

The RCJ Advice Bureau, run by the CAB, has delivered for over 20 years a frontline free legal advice service to ‘Self Represented Parties’ (SRP) who bring or defend civil claims and family matters across England and Wales, including County Courts, High Court, and the Court of Appeal. This advice prepares unrepresented parties for court hearings, and ensures procedure and forms are correctly followed. Not surprisingly, it is a very popular service with all who work in the civil and family courts. But it stands to lose £254,700 per year.

The ASA is the central body to whom many advice agencies look to for training, co-ordination and direction. Their work over many years has ensured that the agencies carry out their responsibilities in a professional manner, particularly with regard to public money. ASA has already lost about £100,000 per year since 2010 from National Lottery funding, and now it stands to lose a further £252,000 in one fell swoop. No wonder the future looks uncertain for this outstanding organisation. Its very existence may now be at risk.

Last but not least is the LCN, which is responsible for individual Law Centres, who rely on it for, among other things, best practice, advice, developing purchase schemes, resource sharing, implementing cost saving, reserve sharing; in fact everything that make Law Centres a crucial part of our legal system, so poor and disadvantaged people can get access to justice. There surely must be a significant role for the LCN, even with the much reduced scope of Legal Aid. It stands to lose over £148,000 per year.

Taking the impact on the three organisations together, this crude move clearly shows the government’s policy towards social welfare law and access to justice generally. It is something Ministers clearly do not find important. Coming at the same time as the overhaul of the welfare system, it is hard to see the decision as anything other than a deliberate attack on principles held dear for many, many years.

Lord Willy Bach is backbench Labour Peer and was previously Shadow Justice Minister in the Lords

Published 29th January 2013

[Copied here from the Labour Lords blog]

Legal Aid

For anyone who might have missed it, here is Willy's latest piece on the Coalition's appalling demolition of the Legal Aid framework.  How can LibDems in the Upper House bring themselves to vote for it?  Unlike Clegg and Cable, they've already got their peerages.

Branch comments on current affairs

At the May Branch meeting we discussed how the Government is struggling just now. Camerons and Osbornes weaknesses are really showing through, and they respond badly under pressure, as shown at PMQ, where Ed Milliband is certainly raising his game in attacking the Tories.

The Governments seems to ge going from one catastrophe to another: Our economy has shrunk again, with the dreaded double dip recession; huge numbers of young people are out of work; the Jeremy Hunt affair is dragging on; the outrageous suggestion of moving poor London people out of the capital en masse is shocking the voters; and while there are deep cuts to legal aid, there is a planned, unwanted, hugely costly re-organisation of the NHS. What next from this coalition?

The time is right for Labour to take the stage with new policies for a win at the next General Election.

Battle to save Legal Aid hots up

For anyone who missed it clicking here should take you to Willy's article in today's Independent.  Click here and you can watch him say much the same thing on today's Daily Politics.  He will apparently also be on steam radio later - PM on Radio Four.

This is the decisive week.  Spread the word and pledge your support via whatever social media you use.

Make no mistake, this is all about silencing the poor.

The Battle for Legal Aid

As the battle to secure access to justice for all continues in the Lords, Willy has written an online article which you can access here.

January Branch meeting

At our January meeting, we again discussed the Boundary Commision decision. It looks like we will be joining with Daventry, so we will need to get to know our prospective new comrades.

Other news - the GC held an excellent meeting on education last month with a well-informed speaker from London; the meeting in February will be on funding of voluntary legal advice, which is facing cuts, just when people most need it.

We discussed the 2 new housing developments proposed for Lutterworth.

At our fund-raising Gala dinner, over 50 people attended, and over £500 was raised.

Legal Aid Cuts

For anyone who missed it, the title of this post links to Willy Bach's article in yesterday's Guardian - "The quiet scandal of legal aid cuts". The motion Willy moved in the Lords on Wednesday can be read here. No doubt we will get an update when Willy speaks to the Fabians in Rugby on November 18.

Branch Speakers and Discussions

The Branch has had a number of excellent speakers at our monthly meetings so far this year.

In February we had a discussion on the merits and de-merits of AV voting, led by Branch member Roger Wood; in March, a lively talk entitled "The Watergate Babies" on American politics was given by David Morgan of Milton Keynes. In April, a sombre discussion on the recent Tory cuts was led by Willy Bach. In June there was a thought provoking session on Climate Change, introduced by David Gair.

Branch members also attended a Constituency meeting in June to discuss the document "Refounding Labour" and send our Branch and Constituency views to the National Executive of the Party.

The Branch has further speakers lined up for Autumn meetings, on aspects of Housing and Education.