Tag: alarm

MSPs ‘alarm’ at legal aid availability

Pic- Andrew Cowan/Scottish Parliament

MSPs on Holyrood’s Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee have voiced their alarm at the extent of “legal aid deserts” in Scotland, which are significantly impacting on people’s access to justice.

The Committee has been exploring civil legal assistance, commonly known as legal aid, in response to concerns raised about access to justice. Legal aid deserts can refer to geographical areas, or elements of law, where there is a lack of legal practitioners available.

During the inquiry the Committee heard of the challenges that people had in finding a legal aid solicitor, with some organisations making 50, or more, phone calls, or individuals needing to travel hundreds of miles to access a solicitor who can provide civil legal assistance.

Low fees for legal aid work and administrative complexity are identified as the key drivers behind the shortage of practitioners. The Committee’s report calls for the Scottish Government to take action to improve the situation immediately.

Reform of the legal aid system has been proposed for several years. An independent review of legal aid in 2018 called for reform to ensure greater focus on the needs of clients and simplification of rules.

However, despite committing to bringing forward legislation, the Scottish Government has not introduced a Bill to reform legal aid in the current parliamentary session. The Committee finds this highly unsatisfactory, given the overwhelming calls for change.

The report also recognises that eligibility is a key issue in access to legal aid. The Committee heard that many people who cannot afford to pay privately for a solicitor are unable to claim legal aid due to rules around disposable income and disposable capital. The Committee does not believe that this is tenable and that the figures used to set this should increase in line with inflation since 2011.

Karen Adam MSP, Convener of the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee, said: “A shortage of legal aid solicitors and ongoing challenges with access are seriously undermining people’s ability to exercise their rights.

“The consequences can be devastating. Victims of domestic abuse can be left without the support they urgently need, and many people find themselves struggling to access safe and secure housing.

“The case for reform is already clear, and we urge the Scottish Government to move forward with changes that will make a real difference.

“Fee reforms, reducing administrative burdens, and widening eligibility are all vital steps to ensure civil legal assistance is fit for purpose and that people across Scotland can get the justice they deserve.”

More voices speak out against devastating EIJB funding cuts

EDINBURGH INTEGRATION JOINT BOARD PLANS TO END £4.5 million GRANTS TO 63 COMUNITY PROJECTS

SCOTTISH COUNCIL of VOLUNTARY ORGANIATIONS (SCVO)

SCVO response to proposal by Edinburgh Integrated Joint Board to remove grant-funding from voluntary organisations:

Letter to Councillor Cammy Day, Leader of City of Edinburgh Council,

Professor John Connaghan OBE, Chair of NHS Lothian 

cc Pat Togher, Chief Officer EIJB

Proposal by Edinburgh Integrated Joint Board to remove grant-funding from voluntary organisations  

I am writing to add SCVO’s voice to the protests regarding the IJB’s proposal to withdraw funding in-year from charities and community groups. 37 of our members are impacted by this decision. 

The intention outlined in the board paper to take a more strategic and collaborative approach in the future has been totally undermined by the impact of reneging on this year’s grant funding.

Trust is a fragile thing, and it will take a long time to rebuild any sense that the council and the health board have an understanding of, or respect for, the voluntary organisations that do so much to support our communities.

When you look to build your strategic partnership in 2025, many of them simply won’t be there because they will have gone out of business. 

Far from saving money, this will generate significant costs to public services as people fall through the cracks, and the additional millions of pounds voluntary organisations bring in from trusts and foundations or the private sector through match funding and other fundraising activities will disappear. A truly strategic approach would be looking to maximise that income-generation, not cut it off. 

It appears that over 100 people who were already in a precarious enough position will lose their jobs. And the discretionary effort of hundreds more volunteers will be lost. 

It is evident that when money is tight, which I recognise it is, the council and the health board have retrenched and focused on short-term savings rather than the public good.

The table in the board paper which illustrates where the money could be “better spent” says it all – to the IJB, acute services matter more than prevention or early intervention. As well as being short-sighted ethically and financially, it flies in the face of all the evidence around what communities need and the rhetoric around person-centred services and prevention.  

I would urge you to intervene and stop the IJB making a decision everyone involved will regret. 

Yours sincerely,

Anna Fowlie
Chief Executive, SCVO

BIG HEARTS: “The value the charity sector brings to our local communities should never be in doubt.”

VOLUNTARY HEALTH SCOTLAND:

VHS Chief Executive @MistryTej has commented on the recent cuts being proposed by Edinburgh IJB.

What will it take for recognition of the crucial work the third sector are doing to reduce health inequalities?

#WEAREVITAL

VOLUNTEER EDINBURGH:

Along with the rest of the sector we are extremely concerned by the proposed early cessation of EIJB grant funding to 64 voluntary sector organisations.  As well as the loss of important services and the associated job losses, this will impact volunteering.

Volunteers are at the heart of the affected organisations, contributing 206,000 hours of support to people in the community worth over £2m. These volunteering opportunities are not only a lifeline to people they help support.

They also enable local people to be active in their communities, build confidence, develop skills, reduce isolation – all of which contribute to better health outcomes for volunteers themselves.

The impact of the loss of these volunteering opportunities cannot be understated.

LIVING RENT:

64 charities are at the risk of closure due to £4.5 million worth of proposed cuts. This will have devastating effects for tenants, for workers and for communities across Edinburgh.

Let’s defend our community centres, services & jobs.

Join us to say NO to Labour-led cuts!

SCOTT ARTHUR MP:

I have today (Wednesday) written to the Cheif (sic) Officer of the EIJB opposing the proposed cuts to the third sector in my constituency – I expressed my concerns in the strongest possible terms.

I support @cllrcammyday fully in his call for fair funding for Edinburgh.

Edinburgh Integration Joint Board meets TOMORROW (Friday 1 December) in the Dean of Guilds Room at The City Chambers at 10am.

The following organisations will make their case against the cuts at the meeting:

Papers for the meeting are below:

EIJB-Public reports pack 01112024Download

Letters: Plans to dismantle Human Rights Act are ‘abhorrent’

Dear Editor

Plans to dismantle the Human Rights Act and create legal hurdles for ordinary people who seek to hold public bodies to account are abhorrent.

The bereaved parents of soldiers who died in ‘Snatch’ Land Rovers in Iraq and Afghanistan sued the Ministry of Defence under the Human Rights Act. Their children were sent to war in lightly armoured vehicles which were known not to offer enough protection against roadside bombs.

The Government suggests that cases brought under the Human Rights Act are often trivial and without merit.

What happened to those families was not trivial and their cases were found to be valid. If they had not fought for justice, the MoD’s failings would simply have been allowed to happen without any accountability.

Human rights claims play an essential role in keeping organisations in check and ensuring justice where those human rights are breached. We should all be alarmed by the Government’s approach.  

Neil McKinley

President, Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL)