Refugee Legal Centre

Press Release

26 November 2003

The Refugee Legal Centre notes the Government has reviewed its original proposals to cut legal aid in asylum and immigration work (Note 1)

Barry Stoyle, the Chief Executive of the Refugee Legal Centre said today:

“ We welcome the fact that the Government has decided not to implement its original proposals completely. We are however concerned that the initial period of 5 hours to give legal advice to asylum applicants is insufficient to properly prepare their application. We are puzzled that, according to the Home Office Press Release, 7 hours will be appropriate for this work in March of next year, but only 5 hours two months later. We are particularly concerned that the criteria by which extensions to that limit will be granted by the LSC appear narrow.

We are troubled that the consequence of this decision will mean that we will not be able to represent all our clients at their asylum interview.

In 1999 the Legal Aid Board accepted that attendance at interviews was one of the ‘key tasks’ in the proper legal representation of asylum seekers. Disputes arising as to what may or may not have been said at interview are often time consuming to resolve and will constitute a constant drain on the resources of the appeals process.

Any decision to stop representation at interview is likely to lead to unfairness and is a false economy. Like the Government we want a ‘fair and efficient’ asylum system but this proposal will significantly undermine that aim. We call on the Government to reconsider”

The Refugee Legal Centre notes the apparent the element of flexibility the DCA proposes in the time and disbursements permitted to be spent in preparing an asylum case - it is now proposed that the new thresholds can be exceeded where appropriate, with the prior authority of the Legal Services Commission. We are concerned how this might work in practice and look forward to discussion with the Government on how it might be implemented. The Constitutional Affairs Committee called for a moratorium on the implementation of the time and funding limits put forward by the government until properly considered proposals are brought forward (Note 2). We support and repeat that call. Our concerns are that the element of flexibility is presently too narrow and the operation of the new system will add a significant layer of administration and bureaucracy.

We are gravely concerned the Government are reviewing legal aid for the initial stages of asylum applications and may seek a reduction in the legal aid available for this stage of the procedure (Note 3). In the cases we represent at appeal, 36% of Home Office initial decisions are subsequently proved to be wrong. The reduction or withdrawal of publicly funded legal representation at this initial stage of the procedure will mean a further and significant drain on the resources of the appeal process. Any change of this sort could be a significant threat to fairness in the United Kingdom’s asylum procedure.

For further comment: Barry Stoyle 020 7780 3222

Notes:

1. The DCA issued a consultation paper on proposed cuts in June 2003. The paper proposed a severe reduction in legal aid by capping the amount of time that can be spent preparing a case at 5 hours and an appeal at 4 hours. The RLC submitted its response on 27^th August. A copy of the response can be found in the news section of our website under Press releases and briefing papers. (www.refugee-legal-centre.org.uk)

2. Report by the Constitutional Affairs Committee. Forth Report of the Session 2002-03 published 31 October 2003.

3. Memorandum submitted jointly by the Department for Constitutional Affairs and the Legal Services Commission to the House of Commons Constitutional Affairs Committee, section 22. Appendix 1 to the Report by the Constitutional Affairs Committee. Forth Report of the Session 2002-03 published 31 October 2003.