Legal aid to be axed in some civil cases

The proposals focused on legal aid in civil rather than criminal cases

The government has announced major changes to the system of civil legal aid in England and Wales.

Speaking in the Commons, Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke said civil legal aid would only be routinely available in cases where life or liberty is at stake.

Funding for a wide range of disputes, including some divorce cases and clinical negligence would be axed.

The proposals are intended to cut the legal aid bill by £350m a year by 2015.

The BBC's Danny Shaw said it is thought there will be 500,000 fewer civil cases as a result.

Mr Clarke told MPs there was a "compelling case for going back to first principles in reforming legal aid".

"It cannot be right that the taxpayer is footing the bill for unnecessary court cases which would never have even reached the courtroom door, were it not for the fact that somebody else was paying.

"I propose to introduce a more targeted civil and family scheme which will discourage people from resorting to lawyers whenever they face a problem, and instead encourage them to consider more suitable methods of dispute resolution," he said.

Legal aid will also no longer be available in school admissions and exclusions and some employment tribunal cases.

But asylum cases, mental health cases and debt and housing matters where someone's home is at immediate risk will all still be funded.

Clake has just said on the radio that where someone has assets (including equit in your house) over £8000, that there would be no legal aid for them.