At least eight in 10 Conservative voters think legal aid is a good thing and want it to be available when facing life-changing problems, according to a poll conducted by the Law Society.

According to the poll of 2,000 members of the public, conducted on 6 January, 85% Conservative, 95% Labour and 97% Liberal Democrat voters agreed that legal aid is a good thing.

Just over half (53%) of respondents thought legal aid was available for domestic violence cases and 73% think it should be available. The Society said legal aid is available only if there is an injunction.

Just under half (44%) thought legal aid was available for employment cases and 68% said it should be available. The Society said legal aid is only available for discrimination cases.

Just under half (42%) thought legal aid was available for rented housing issues and 66% thought it should be available. The Society said legal aid is available only if living conditions are a health threat or at repossession stage.

Society president Lubna Shuja, who will give evidence on legal aid to the House of Commons justice select committee tomorrow, said the government was ‘swimming against the tide of its own voters’.

Despite overwhelming public support, ‘chronic underfunding means more and more people are struggling to get civil legal aid and are resorting to representing themselves at often critical points in their lives’, she said.

‘Over the past decade the number of legal aid firms has nearly halved, and recent Law Society research shows this number could drop by a further third, by 2025.

‘This means less help for families facing eviction or fighting for welfare benefits, and for vulnerable people struggling to get access to the care they are entitled to.’

The Society welcomed the government’s civil legal aid review. However, the review will report in 2024. ‘Services are collapsing now. We cannot afford to wait until 2024 for investment, if we want to ensure that support is there for those who need it in these turbulent times,’ Shuja said.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice said: 'We invested £813m last year to make sure civil legal aid gets to those who need it most – supporting people with issues such as housing, debt management or domestic abuse. Our comprehensive review will help identify any issues the sector is facing and ensure the system is sustainable well into the future.'

 

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