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06 October 2017 / Steve Hynes
Issue: 7764 / Categories: Opinion , Legal aid focus , Profession
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The right to justice & an agenda for change

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Steve Hynes interviewed the former legal aid minister, Lord Bach (pictured), last month to discuss The Right to Justice , the final report from the Commission he chaired on access to justice policy

“The legislation we propose (The Right to Justice Act) will enshrine in statute the right to justice backed by an independent Justice Commission to enforce it.’ According to Bach the new Commission ‘would monitor how government departments work’ and act to prevent barriers to people being able to enforce their rights.

Aside from the new legislation the report calls for ‘urgent policy changes’ to address immediate crisis in the justice system. These include changes to eligibility criteria and broadening the scope of legal aid.

From 2008-10 Bach was the minister with responsibility for legal aid in the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). In this post he says he realised how crucial access to early advice is to prevent legal problems escalating. Throughout the interview he would return to the theme of Social Welfare Law (SWL)—SWL is defined by the

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