The legal aid system has been 'wrecked' by the Access to Justice Act 1999, which has caused hardship to those who can no longer secure legal representation, the Liberal Democrat conference heard this week.

Speaking in Bournemouth, the party's constitutional affairs spokesman in the House of Lords, Lord Goodhart, said: 'It should perhaps be called the Denial of Justice Act. The cash limits imposed have caused a crisis recognised by everyone except the government.'


He said the effect of cutting the civil legal aid budget to compensate for increased demand on its criminal counterpart had been to strike at the ability of the poorest members of society to secure their rights.


'Ministers say they cannot invest in civil legal aid because the money is needed for schools and hospitals,' Lord Goodhart said.


'How does that help the family living in a dilapidated home their landlord refuses to repair, or the mother waiting for maintenance payments or the employee who loses their job due to racism? These people need legal aid.'


Conference delegates voted for a ring-fenced civil legal aid budget, and an end to 'rationing [of] the number of clients a solicitor or advice agency may advise' through matter starts. Instead, there would be 'carefully adjusted criteria governing eligibility for legal aid'.


Meanwhile, David Heath, the Liberal Democrats' constitutional affairs spokesman in the House of Commons, warned about the dangers of 'advice deserts' in rural areas.


Speaking at a Law Society reception, he called the lack of availability of legal aid 'deeply worrying', and said it resulted from the presence of a home secretary with 'no time for the legal profession or for the concept of justice'.


'Legal representation should not be available only to the rich and powerful, but the government has withdrawn legal aid funding and it particularly hits rural areas,' Mr Heath said.


He suggested that the Labour government's objective was 'a legal system free of juries, lay magistrates and any other constraint on the executive'.


Law Society Deputy Vice-President Fiona Woolf called for more investment in legal aid and said it was essential that solicitors entering the profession could expect to enjoy 'a fulfilling career in publicly financed work'.


The meeting also saw the launch of a 'Manifesto for Advice' by Citizens Advice, which argued that investment in legal aid would be cost effective as some £12 billion was lost to the economy each year in the time taken off work by people who have to resolve legal problems.