Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Extended Family Guardianship: Legal Aid

Tuesday 16 May 2023 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Government laid a statutory instrument in February 2023 injecting 5.6 million annually into the legal aid system.
  • The government committed to discussing the issue of legal aid for extended family members seeking guardianship with Lord Bellamy.
  • The Minister acknowledged ongoing concerns about access to justice and noted continued funding of 1.2 billion for criminal and 813 million for civil legal aid.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Peter Aldous Con
Justice & Courts Children & Families
Context

The question arises from the need to ensure legal support for family members, particularly grandparents and close relatives, who seek guardianship of vulnerable children.

Question

Whether the Government are taking steps to ensure that legal aid is available for extended family members who are seeking guardianship of vulnerable children. The government laid a statutory instrument in February this year which injects £5.6 million into the system annually.

Answer from Mike Freer

We laid a family statutory instrument in February this year which, among other things, brings special guardianship orders in private law proceedings into the scope of legal aid, injecting a further £5.6 million a year into the system.

Answered
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Q2 Peter Aldous Con
Children & Families
Context

The question follows an initial query about legal aid for family members seeking guardianship and seeks to extend the discussion to a wider review.

Question

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that answer. The Government's announcement, which he outlined, of an additional £5.6 million for legal aid to support family members seeking guardianship of vulnerable children is extremely welcome. I would be grateful if he considered whether that could be part of a wider review of the rights of family members, specifically grandparents who are very often best placed to provide a loving home, care and support.

Answer from Mike Freer

The rights of grandparents have risen up the agenda considerably over the last few years. Both colleagues who have spoken on this issue today, including my hon. Friend, make some valid points. I will give a commitment to discuss it with my colleague Lord Bellamy, who leads on this area, to see what further work we can do.

Partly answered

Not addressed: commitment is vague and lacks specific action or timeline

How: Will Give A Commitment, See What Further Work We Can Do

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Q3 Afzal Khan Lab Manchester Rusholme
Justice & Courts Benefits & Welfare
Context

The question addresses concerns about significant cuts to legal aid over the last decade, particularly in civil cases, and asks for a reversal of these policies.

Question

These are not my words on the cuts to legal aid, but the words of the new Lord Chancellor: “There is now a serious concern that, without some steps to restore a measure of access to justice, serious injustice will inevitably follow.” Will the Minister heed the words of his new boss and reverse the devastating cuts to legal aid that his party has inflicted over the last decade?

Answer from Mike Freer

This Government have continued to fund legal aid, with £1.2 billion on criminal and £813 million on civil. In the last few months, we have injected nearly £30 million into the civil part and some £13 million of that is legal aid for special guardianship orders.

Not addressed: question about reversing cuts, response discusses current funding

How: We Are Continuing To Fund, Injected Nearly £30 Million Into The Civil Part

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