The DWP proposals on the Back to Work Plan will not remove access to legal aid for those Universal Credit (UC) claimants who may be sanctioned. Whilst anyone whose UC claim is closed would no longer be passported through the legal aid means test income assessment, the individual would remain eligible for civil or criminal legal aid, subject to the application of the full means assessment in the usual way. The additional provisions being built into DWP\u2019s policy proposals will also mean that no vulnerable individual would face having their claim closed, thereby providing a further tier of protection for many legal aid user groups, such as the disabled and the homeless.<\/p>
<\/p>
Over coming months, MoJ officials will be working closely with DWP officials as the policy develops.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4004", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Mike Freer"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Finchley and Golders Green"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mike Freer"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-12-12", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : {"_value" : "5539"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-12-12T14:34:51.12Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "54"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2023-12-06", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Legal Aid Scheme: Universal Credit"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Autumn Statement 2023, published on 22 November 2023, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of proposals to remove access to legal aid for Universal Credit claimants who have had an open-ended sanction for over six months on access to justice.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1516", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andy Slaughter"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hammersmith"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Andy Slaughter"} ], "uin" : "5538"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1675891", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Ministry of Justice"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1675891/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The DWP proposals on the Back to Work Plan will not remove access to legal aid for those Universal Credit (UC) claimants who may be sanctioned. Whilst anyone whose UC claim is closed would no longer be passported through the legal aid means test income assessment, the individual would remain eligible for civil or criminal legal aid, subject to the application of the full means assessment in the usual way. The additional provisions being built into DWP\u2019s policy proposals will also mean that no vulnerable individual would face having their claim closed, thereby providing a further tier of protection for many legal aid user groups, such as the disabled and the homeless.<\/p>
<\/p>
Over coming months, MoJ officials will be working closely with DWP officials as the policy develops.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4004", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Mike Freer"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Finchley and Golders Green"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mike Freer"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-12-12", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : {"_value" : "5538"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-12-12T14:34:51.183Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "54"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2023-12-06", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Legal Aid Scheme: Universal Credit"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Autumn Statement 2023, published on 22 November 2023, whether the proposal to end access to legal aid for sanctioned Universal Credit claimants (a) relates to (i) criminal and (ii) civil legal aid and (b) would prevent those people from (A) passporting and (B) accessing all legal aid.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1516", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andy Slaughter"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hammersmith"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Andy Slaughter"} ], "uin" : "5539"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1662954", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Ministry of Justice"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1662954/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
I refer the honourable Member to the answer I gave on 26 September 2023 to Question 199292:<\/p>
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2023-09-13/199292<\/a>.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4004", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Mike Freer"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Finchley and Golders Green"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mike Freer"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-10-18", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-10-18T15:20:20.55Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "54"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2023-10-13", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Courts: Concrete"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether any court buildings have been identified as having reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC); and whether his Department plans to fund emergency mitigation works to any courts in which RAAC is identified.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1516", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andy Slaughter"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hammersmith"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Andy Slaughter"}
], "uin" : "200808"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1651669", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Ministry of Justice"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1651669/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " The Ministry of Justice does not hold direct information on the number of law centres in England or those that have ceased operating.<\/p> Since 2015/16, the Legal Aid Agency has paid £57.2m to law centres across England and Wales, in respect of Civil and Criminal Legal Aid work. We are unable to provide the information from 2010 onwards as Legal Aid Provider Statistics data is only available from 2015/16 onwards.<\/p> Further, the Government has invested over £25m in grant funding for the not-for-profit sector including law centres since 2014.<\/p> In March 2023, the Government announced a new £10.4m Improving Outcomes Through Legal Support (IOTLS) grant. This grant runs from July 2023 until March 2025 and is being administered by the Access to Justice Foundation on behalf of the Ministry of Justice. The grant has been awarded to 59 organisations across England and Wales, including 15 law centres. This funding will enable organisations to provide legal advice and support to help people resolve their problems as early as possible.<\/p> The IOTLS grant builds on the previous legal support grants including the £4.8m Help Accessing Legal Support grant which ran from September 2022 until June 2023 and supported 52 front line organisations including 14 law centres.<\/p> Between April 2020 and March 2021, during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, organisations were awarded Government emergency grant funding totalling £5.4m via the Covid-19 Specialist Advice Service Scheme. Of the total amount, £3m was distributed to law centres via the Law Centres Network. This funding enabled organisations to continue providing critical services to the most vulnerable and prevented the closure of a number of law centres.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4004", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Mike Freer"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Finchley and Golders Green"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mike Freer"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-07-13", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-07-13T11:44:24.27Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "54"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2023-07-10", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Law Centres: Closures"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an estimate of the number of Law Centres that have closed in England since 2010; and how much funding his Department has provided to Law Centres since 2010.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1516", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andy Slaughter"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hammersmith"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Andy Slaughter"}
], "uin" : "193071"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1648824", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Ministry of Justice"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1648824/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " All prisoner accommodation is certified in line with the Certified Prisoner Accommodation Framework<\/a>. Cells are only shared where a Prison Group Director has certified them to be of an adequate size and condition. The process of certification requires every prison to record all cells that have been assessed as suitable for crowding, and this information is held centrally.<\/p> Crowding data is published annually as part of the HMPPS Annual Digest.<\/a> The 2022/23 version of the Annual Digest is due to be published on 27 July 2023.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3969", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Damian Hinds"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "East Hampshire"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Damian Hinds"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-07-04", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-07-04T09:57:44.987Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "54"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2023-06-29", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Prisons: Overcrowding"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department collects data on the number of cells that are overcrowded in each prison.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1516", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andy Slaughter"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hammersmith"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Andy Slaughter"}
], "uin" : "191750"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1648152", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Ministry of Justice"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1648152/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " Prison governors set a regime for each day specifying when prisoners will ordinarily be unlocked. There will be occasions, however, when certain prisoners will remain in their cell during these times. Reasons for this will include illness, being over retirement age, the management of operational incidents, and other operational reasons such as staff needing to be deployed to other duties.<\/p> <\/p> There will also be occasions where prisoners will be out of cell at times when they are scheduled to be locked in, for example to attend medical appointments at hospital, a late arrival from court, or a transfer between prisons.<\/p> <\/p> To accurately record the amount of time prisoners spend out of cell, His Majesty\u2019s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) would therefore be required to record information for each individual prisoner, taking into account their unique movements on a daily basis.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3969", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Damian Hinds"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "East Hampshire"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Damian Hinds"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-07-03", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-07-03T08:24:25.107Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "54"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2023-06-27", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Prison Accommodation"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 7 June 2023 to Question 187087 on Prison Accommodation, for what reason it is not practicable to collect data on time out of cell for each prison in England and Wales.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1516", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andy Slaughter"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hammersmith"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Andy Slaughter"}
], "uin" : "191271"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1641089", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Ministry of Justice"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1641089/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "