Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-10-27.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the total cost to the public purse of their appeal against the High Court’s ruling in R v The Secretary of State for Justice [2014] EWHC 2365 (Admin).

Lord Faulks

As a matter of principle this Government believes that individuals should have a strong connection with the UK in order to benefit from the civil legal aid scheme. We believe that the residence test we have proposed is a fair and appropriate way to demonstrate that strong connection. We have therefore pursued an appeal against the High Court’s judgment in this case.

The total costs to the public purse of pursuing this appeal can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.