Ken Clarke silences the voices of the weak as legal aid is cut, says Unite

15 November 2010

The weak, the vulnerable and the disadvantaged will pay the price for the coalition's planned 'reforms' of the legal aid system in England and Wales.

Unite, the largest union in the country, said that the plans announced by Justice Secretary, Kenneth Clarke today (Monday, 15 November) would deny access to the legal aid system for those seeking help on debt, education, employment, immigration, housing, social welfare and family cases.

Rachael Maskell, Unite national officer for the Not for Profit sector said: 'What Ken Clarke has done today is to silence the voices of the weak in British society in a brutal bid to reduce his department’s budget by 23% over the next four years.’

As a result of this announcement, Unite will redouble the efforts of its Justice for All campaign to ensure that the principles of legal aid, enshrined when its was set out in 1949, are maintained, especially as the coalition’s tough austerity package of cuts starts to bite.

The government’s £81bn worth of cuts announced in the Comprehensive Spending Review last month will heighten the need for the very legal services which are now for the chop.

Rachael Maskell said: 'Ken Clarke may wish to silence the voices of hundreds of thousands of citizens seeking assistance against the injustices inflicted on them, for example, by unscrupulous landlords. However, Unite will become their standard bearer and speak out against the effects of these draconian measures.'

'For those legal advice services that survive these cuts, lawyers and advisors will be severely restricted because of cost constraints as to what they can offer in the way of support.'

Unite has 60,000 members in the not for profit sector.

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