Ministry of Justice written question – answered at on 16 March 2015.
Dame Cheryl Gillan
Conservative, Chesham and Amersham
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will review his Department's decision not to provide legal aid to petitioners appearing before the High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands) Bill Select Committee.
Shailesh Vara
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice
Decisions about legal aid funding in civil cases are a matter for the Director of Legal Aid Casework and his staff at the Legal Aid Agency (LAA), which is responsible for administering the legal aid scheme. Ministers cannot intervene in decisions made about the grant of funding in individual cases.
The LAA refused an application for funding from the High Speed 2 Action Alliance (“HS2AA”) in relation to the Bill procedure, as it did not meet the statutory criteria to receive public funding in respect of either means or exceptional funding. A review of the refusal of the application was sought and the LAA has upheld its decision.
Yes2 people think so
No3 people think not
Would you like to ask a question like this yourself? Use our Freedom of Information site.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
