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Party conferences provided some talk but not much action
Despite agendas dominated by internal party dynamics and big political narratives, the issue of access to criminal and civil justice continued to bubble on during this year’s conference season.
At the Liberal Democrats’ conference in Bournemouth, an ‘emergency motion’ on criminal legal aid fees and contracts failed to get on the main agenda. However, the party’s lawyers association – now boldly rebranding itself as Rights–Liberties–Justice – held a fringe meeting, with speakers from the Law Society, LAPG, the Access to Justice Foundation and the Low Commission, on funding access to justice that ranged over the current problems and different policy responses, including how to provide earlier intervention and whether there should be a legal sector levy to fund free legal advice.
More promisingly, at Labour’s conference in Brighton, the party announced a formal review (personally requested by the new party leader) of its policy on legal aid, to be led by Lord Bach. Speaking at a Labour Lawyers fringe meeting, Lords Bach and Falconer indicated that this would be wide-ranging and that scope issues would be revisited. Lord Falconer suggested that civil legal aid scope should include issues of ‘personal security’, and not just liberty, child welfare, loss of home and fundamental rights. Lord Bach also spoke at a fringe meeting organised by the Low Commission with the local advice sector in Brighton. He indicated that advice agencies should have a key role in delivering access to justice and that he was to open to ideas. However, with new cuts to local government expected, there wasn’t much room for optimism.
On to the Conservatives’ conference in Manchester, which at times felt besieged by protestors. Justice secretary Michael Gove lived up to his reputation as a reformer with big promises on criminal justice reform and tackling reoffending in the prison population. But despite his rhetorical attacks on social injustice, Gove’s speeches lacked any understanding of the role of legal aid in realising either social justice or civil rights. The Low Commission had planned a fringe meeting on the links between health and justice, but had to cancel due to a lack of willing speakers. However, the issues did come up in other fringe meetings: Lord Faulks, minister of state for civil justice, defended part 2 (regarding civil costs) of LASPO as a success, but he said part 1 (on legal aid) would be subject a post-legislative review and may need be to ‘fine-tuned’ if issues of injustice are identified. In the meantime, with justice ministers under pressure from both internal and external critics, the noises coming out of the conference were that any thoughts of pulling out of the European Convention on Human Rights were being quietly abandoned. ■
The Liberal Democrats’ lawyers group has now boldly rebranded itself as Rights– Liberties–Justice.