The Law Society has warned that a ‘radical rethink’ of legal aid policy is needed to prevent a reduction in the quality and scope of legal aid and to ensure access to justice.

Law Society chief executive Desmond Hudson (pictured) told delegates at the Westminster Legal Policy Forum this week: ‘The whole legal aid system has lost its way. Funding has been over-stretched and policy formulation gives the impression of being haphazard, unconnected and too often incoherent.

‘A radical rethink is required if the legal aid system is to remain fit for purpose.’

Hudson said the current policy reforms were ‘completely arbitrary’ and had ‘potentially destructive consequences’ with the ‘very real risk’ that the already ‘disillusioned and fragmented’ supplier base will be rendered ineffective or disappear altogether.

He cited a recent National Audit Office survey that showed 28% of firms believed they would not be offering legal aid services in five years’ time.

Whichever party is in power after the general election cannot expect to see the current level of quality maintained at the existing level of funding, Hudson warned. If the government is unwilling to fund legal aid appropriately, it will have to make a political case for which services it will no longer provide.

Legal aid minister Lord Bach said the reform programme was designed to facilitate efficient delivery of legal services, so more people can be helped within the constraints of the limited budget.

The reforms, especially the new fees, are designed to encourage lawyers to spend time where their skills can be best used, rather than doing work that could be delegated to less qualified staff, Bach added.