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The words 'At around £2 billion a year' tell their own story about the honesty of our political bosses - in 2006, that's seven years ago the legal aid budget was described as 'out of control' at, you've guessed it, over £5 billion a year! In real terms it has reduced so these cuts are simply not justified from a national point of view.

Also in 2006 it was stated by the Legal Services Commission that the legal aid budget had risen from £1.5 billion in 1997. That means that in 16 years the budget has increased only £500 million whereas the budgets of most of the rest of the public sector have risen at a far greater pace - the NHS being the prime example - last month the GPs magazine 'Pulse' trumpeted an additional £2 billion in health spending this year.