Legal aid fees for criminal solicitors will be cut by 8.75% and the number of contracts for attending police stations and magistrates court reduced by two-thirds, the Ministry of Justice has confirmed.
The department’s first major spending decision since Michael Gove became justice secretary triggered protests from lawyers who had hoped to avoid economies left unresolved from the previous parliament.
The decision to go ahead with most of the savings outlined by former justice secretary Chris Grayling was greeted with dismay by professional bodies who warned that firms would be forced to close. Separate planned cuts to advocacy fees have, however, been suspended.
A written parliamentary statement from Shailesh Vara, the minister responsible for legal aid, said the 8.75% fee reduction – the second within a year – would come into force on 1 July.
The number of contracts for providing duty lawyers to advise suspects detained in police stations or defendants at magistrates courts will also be reduced from 1,600 to 527. Whether fewer contracts will result in fewer lawyers is not yet clear.
The MoJ spent £1.7bn on all criminal and civil legal aid in 2014-15. It has fallen sharply over recent years.
Vara claimed the changes would “preserve access to justice and high quality advocacy”. Last week, the Treasury announced that the MoJ would have to slice £249m out of its annual budget.
The president of the Law Society, Andrew Caplen, said the new round of cuts would undermine the criminal justice system. “We are deeply concerned not only for the immediate future of the justice system, but for its continued survival in years to come,” he said.
“Criminal legal aid solicitors are critical for ensuring that anyone accused of wrongdoing has a fair trial and yet few young lawyers see a future in this work.
“The government’s cuts could undermine the criminal justice system to the point that it may no longer deliver fair outcomes. Twenty years without any increase in fees, followed by two sets of cuts since 2010, had already pushed firms’ viability to breaking point. Now many solicitors’ practices undertaking this vital work in communities around the country will be forced to close.”
Jonathan Black of the London Criminal Courts Solicitors’ Association said: “We have over the last two years heard a catalogue of real examples of defendants and victims suffering as a result of cuts in legal aid and access to justice.
“[The justice secretary] is proceeding despite being aware of this and the warnings issued by experts. There is no further fat to be cut, let alone meat or skin – we are cutting deep into the bone.
“The level of unrepresented parties both in police stations and in courts will simply increase. In the week in which we commemorate the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta the government chooses to confirm its intention to proceed with this dangerous project.”
Alistair MacDonald QC, chairman of the Bar Council of England and Wales, said: “The Bar Council continues to have grave concerns about the effects upon solicitor colleagues of further fee cuts and the implementation of the dual contracting scheme. We remain convinced that these measures are likely seriously to damage access to justice and the provision of high-quality advocacy services in England and Wales.”
However, he welcomed one development: “We are pleased that the MoJ has agreed not to proceed with the cuts to the advocates’ graduated fee scheme.
Tony Cross, chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, said: “The Criminal Bar Association regrets the decision of the Ministry of Justice to press ahead with the duty provider scheme and to impose further fee cuts on hard pressed litigators. [Our] executive will be discussing our response at the earliest opportunity, including further consultation with our membership.”
Last month, criminal barristers voted overwhelmingly to stage a new round of mass walkouts if the cuts went ahead.
In a separate development, lawyers for the official solicitor to the senior courts have launched a judicial review challenge to the way in which the exceptional case funding scheme is working in legal aid cases.
The Public Law Project has been instructed on behalf of a vulnerable individual, known only as “IS”, who claims that he cannot bring a claim unless he is represented. The MoJ insists that the exceptional funding scheme is working as intended.
Vara said: “Maintaining access to justice is absolutely vital and remains at the heart of our reforms. We cannot escape the continuing need to reduce the deficit, so we must ensure our entire criminal justice system performs more efficiently. We spend more per person on legal aid than many other similar systems – for example, twice as much as Australia, Canada and the Republic of Ireland.
“The continuation of the reforms started by the coalition government will make sure our criminal legal aid system delivers value for money to taxpayers, provides high-quality legal advice to those accused of a crime, and puts the profession on a sustainable footing.”