Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to impose a residence test for legal aid.

Mr Shailesh Vara

Legal aid is a fundamental part of our justice system, but resources are not limitless.

The Government believe that individuals should have a strong connection to the UK in order to benefit from the civil legal aid scheme. We believe the residence test we proposed is a fair and proportionate way to demonstrate that connection.

The proposed residence test was challenged by way of judicial review brought by the Public Law Project. We are disappointed with the High Court judgement and have been granted permission to appeal. The appeal has been listed for 16 and 17 June 2015 in the Court of Appeal.