POLICY, CAMPAIGNS & NEWS News and Media News BIHR signs open letter on legal aid cuts The letter, reproduced below, can be accessed on the Guardian's website here.Legal Aid cuts threaten our very democracy In 2010, annual expenditure for the civil and criminal justice system stood at approximately £2bn per annum, which equates to the cost of running the NHS for a fortnight. Spending was falling and was not spiralling out of control. Now, after two years of an unprecedented programme of cuts, the level of spending is down to approximately £1.5bn per annum. The effect of the cuts is reflected in eye-watering statistics. From 2012-13 to 2013-14, debt cases fell from 81,792 to 2,423 and in clinical negligence from 2,859 to 114. In employment law, legally aided cases fell from 16,154 to six in the same period. The huge increase in employment tribunal fees has meant that people without deep pockets have little to no protection against unscrupulous employers. We know that cuts disproportionately affect women and, sure enough, the government’s own figures show an 80% drop in the number of women taking employment cases to tribunal. Funding in family law cases dropped by 60%, causing a predicted rise in unrepresented defendants, a trend now also starting to be seen in the criminal courts. What the figures do not convey is the sheer human misery of being unable to get legal advice. GPs report a large increase in the number of patients who would have been assisted by advice on benefits, employment, debts and housing. Cuts to legal aid are literally making people sick. Civil servants in the Ministry of Justice admit the imperative has been to cut first and gather evidence later. As the justice committee recently noted, there has been no attempt to analyse the knock-on effects of the cut on other parts of government spending. Research by the Legal Action Group has demonstrated that every £1 spent on legal aid advice saves the state £6. With cuts and debilitating restructuring comes the spectre of advice deserts, widespread miscarriages of justice, hundreds of thousands denied redress and the draining of the talent pool of future lawyers and judges as young people increasingly choose a career away from civil and criminal law. We now have a prison service with rising levels of self-harm, self-inflicted deaths and violence against staff and inmates, the perverse dismantling of the probation service with one in three officers set to be made redundant in the newly privatised services (plural) and disarray in our courts. All evidence of decision-making which has unpicked good practice and failed to address real systemic problems. Politicians speak about access to justice as an optional extra that we simply cannot afford. But the introduction of legal aid, replacing the ad hoc “poor law” scheme of the 1920s and 1930s, came during a period of true austerity in the wake of the second world war. Access to justice is more than just a public good which we can choose to fund generously when we are told our economic fortunes allow. Without access to justice for all, inequalities take on a more dangerous edge which threatens the legitimacy of not just the justice system but our democracy. We call upon the next government to abandon the highly controversial restructuring of criminal defence, restore legal help to the many currently without redress and to establish a royal commission to investigate the current crisis regarding the diminution of access to justice. In addition we call for an independent body to review legal aid rates, including expert witness rates so as to depoliticise them and instead move to an evidence-based approach to ensure public need is adequately met in the provision of legal services. Sir Anthony Hooper Former Lord Justice of appeal, Judicial fellow of the Judicial Institute of University College, London Sir Stephen Sedley Former Lord Justice of appeal, visiting professor, University of Oxford Sir Alan Moses Former Lord Justice of appeal Lord Carlile QC Lord Ramsbotham Baroness Helena Kennedy QC Baroness Lister of Burtersett Sir Geoffrey Bindman QC (Hon) Frances Crook Chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform Shami Chakrabarti Director of Liberty His Honour Judge Barrington Black Dr Peter Green Forensic physician and chairman, National Network of Designated Healthcare Professionals for Child Safeguarding Professor Marjorie Mayo Emeritus professor of community development, Goldsmiths, University of London Ian Lawrence General secretary Napo – Probation and family courts Margaret DeJong Consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist Professor Ann M Mortimer Emeritus professor of psychiatry, University of Hull Bill Waddington Chair, Criminal Law Solicitors Association Jonathan Black President, London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association Alistair MacDonald QC Chair of the Bar Council Nicola MackIntosh QC (Hon) Co-chair, LAPG Jenny Beck Co-chair, LAPG Steve Hynes Director, Legal Action Group Steven Hirsch Professor emeritus, Imperial College London Shauneen Lamb Director of Just For Kids Law Rhona Friedman Co founder Justice Alliance Zoe Gascoyne Chair, Criminal Law Committee, Liverpool Law Society Matt Foot Co founder Justice Alliance Daniel Machover Chair of Inquest Deborah Coles Co-director, Inquest Helen Shaw Co-director, Inquest Joe Mensah-Dankwah Director, Black Solicitors Network Ruth Hayes Chair CYWNfP NISC, Unite the Union Tony Cross QC Chair Criminal Bar Association Chantal-Aimee Doerries QC Vice-chair the Bar Council Katie Brown Co-chair of Young Legal Aid Lawyers Connor Johnston Co-chair of Young Legal Aid Lawyers Andrew O’Byrne QC Leader of the Northern Circuit John Elvidge QC North Eastern Circuit Andrew Langdon QC Leader of the Western Circuit Max Hill QC Leader of the South Eastern Circuit Richard Atkins QC Leader of the Midlands Circuit Paul Lewis QC Leader of the Chester and Wales Circuit Stephen Bowen Director, British Institute of Human Rights Mandie Lavin Chief executive officer, Chartered Institute of Legal Executives Robin Murray Vice chair Criminal Law Solicitors Association Julian Hayes Vice president London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association Dinah Rose QC Michael Mansfield QC Mark Fenhalls QC Vice chair Criminal Bar Association Joy Merriam Chair Access to Justice Committee of the Law Society Jane Hickman Secretary Criminal Appeal Lawyers Association Valentina Rusu Director of RICOL, Interpreters’ and Translators’ Cooperative of London Emma Scott Director Rights of Women Professor Richard Velleman Emeritus professor of mental health research, University of Bath Cris McCurley Law Society legal aid lawyer of the year, partner BHBLLP Newcastle Gareth Peirce Birnberg Peirce Andrew Holroyd Saimo Chahal QC (Hon) Rebecca Trowler QC Dr Judith Freedman Convenor of the Consortium of Expert Witnesses to the Family Courts Mukul Chawla QC Dr Shirley Gracias Independent psychiatrist and Director of Families Inc CIC Dr David M Foreman Member, Child and Adolescent Faculty Executive, Royal College of Psychiatrists Paul Harris Past President London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association Dr Tanya Garrett Honorary senior lecturer, University of Birmingham Professor Peter Kinderman Professor of clinical psychology, University of Liverpool Biza Stenfert Kroese Senior lecturer in clinical psychology and consultant clinical psychologist, University of Birmingham Jules Carey Human rights lawyer, Bindmans LLP Chris Topping Chair, Access to Justice Committee, Liverpool Law Society Louise Straw President, Manchester Law Society Gwyn Lewis Chair, Magistrates and Crown Court Committee, Manchester Law Society Hilary Eldridge Chief executive, The Lucy Faithfull Foundation Dr Richard Fry Independent consultant child and family psychiatrist Rachel Baldwin President of Sheffield Law Society Dr Mair Edwards Clinical psychologist Dr Miriam Silver Consultant clinical psychologist children and parenting Roger Ralph Chair, CILEx legal aid working party Guy Edwards Emeritus NHS consultant Robin Benians Child, adolescent and family psychiatrist Anca Ionescu Director of RICOL, Interpreters’ and Translators’ Cooperative of London Dr Malcolm Bourne Consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist and London PLO Monitoring Group Dr Kairen Cullen Mike Jones Former chair, Criminal Law Solicitors Association Jon Barry Coldwell Consultant in clinical and forensic psychology Bernard Kat Health and clinical psychologist Steven Dawson Honorary secretary, Sheffield Law Society Carmel Jennings Consultant child and family psychologist Liz Hall Greg Foxsmith Junior vice-chair, London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association Dr T Nesic Clinical director, Consultant child and adolescent psychotherapist Vicki Hamilton Clinical psychologist Charles Zeitlin Consultant clinical psychologist, West Sussex Risk Assessment Team Dr Judith Anderson Retired psychiatrist Dr Diana Birch Medical director, Youth Support Dr Begum Maitra Psychiatrist and psychotherapist Jenny Wiltshire Secretary, London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association Dr Gwen Adshead Consultant forensic psychiatrist and psychotherapist Dr Kabir Padamsee Consultant in child and adolescent psychiatry Dr Lori Bisbey Consultant child, adult and family psychologist Dr Kari Carstairs Consultant clinical psychologist Dr Eveline B Knight-Jones Paediatrician Steven Bird Criminal Appeal Lawyers Association Cllr Dr Lynn Moore Mushtaq Khan President, Birmingham Law Society Dr Claire Sturge Harrow CAMHS Dr Mike Harris Consultant forensic psychiatrist James Turner Chair, Criminal Law Committee, Birmingham Law Society Dr Jacqueline Blyth Consultant clinical psychologist Dr Waseem Alladin Founding Editor in Chief, Counselling Psychology Quarterly, Consultant clinical and counselling psychologist/Forensic clinical neuropsychologist Dr Jaime Craig Consultant clinical psychologist Chris Henley QC Dr Naomi Murphy Consultant clinical and forensic psychologist Dr Lars Davidsson Prof Dr Eia Asen Consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist Mr W D Newman Consultant paediatric ophthalmic surgeon Ian Anderson Chartered psychologist Charles Neal Treasurer, Sheffield Law Society Dr Evril Silver Consultant clinical psychologist Ben Dawson Trainee clinical psychologist, Lancaster University Adam Wagner Human rights barrister Dr Lynne Amidon Consultant child and adolescent pyschotherapist Dr P J Kennedy Consultant in clinical and forensic psychology Will Curvis Trainee clinical psychologist Peter Parnes Clinical psychologist Dr Gordon Milson Clinical psychologist Francis Fitzgibbon QC Dr Denise McCartan Clinical psychologist Paul Cousins Consultant forensic clinical psychologist Dr Sarah Krahenbuhl Dr Gemma Cheney Chartered clinical psychologist Dr Mary Murphy-Ford Consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist and adult psychotherapist Linda Jeffes Independent chartered clinical psychologist Dr Stephen Weatherhead Clinical psychologist Sylvia Duncan Consultant clinical psychologist Dr Janine R Braier Consultant clinical psychologist Nicola Palfrey Legal Aid solicitor James Palfrey Legal Aid solicitor Chris Ramsay South-west regional representative, Amnesty International UK