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Clause 17—(Right To Free Legal Aid)

Volume 465: debated on Wednesday 25 May 1949

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8.30 p.m.

I beg to move, in page 17, line 38, at the end, to insert:

"(3) Before a person is granted free legal aid under any of the Acts mentioned in subsection (1) of this section he may be required to furnish a written statement in the prescribed form about matters relevant for determining whether his means are insufficient to enable him to obtain legal aid, and if a person in furnishing such a written statement as foresaid (whether required so to do or not) knowingly makes any false statement or false representation he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding four months or to both.
The form for the purpose of this subsection shall be prescribed by the Secretary of State by regulations to be made by statutory instrument."
The procedure for applying for legal aid in the criminal courts is somewhat different from that which will be introduced by this Bill in connection with civil proceedings and there will not be the same opportunity for any examination as to the means of the applicant for legal assistance. In Committee the hon. and learned Gentleman the Member for Daventry (Mr. Manningham-Buller) suggested for that reason that there ought to be a statutory declaration as to the means of the applicant. We felt that there might be delays and difficulties of one kind and another in having a statutory declaration in every case, but this Amendment will enable the Secretary of State to prescribe a form on which applications for legal aid will have to be made under a penalty for false statements. That form will contain a number of questions in a simple form likely to be readily answerable by the kind of persons who may have to fill it in so as to give information about their means and so forth, and on receipt of that form it will in the discretion of the justices whether to have further inquiry made. Indeed, it will be in the discretion of the justices whether or not to insist upon the form itself being filled in. They may be satisfied without having the form filled in. They may have other information as to the man's means and may be able to grant legal aid without it, but they will have the right to ask for the form and to pursue inquiries under it.

I want to say "Thank you" to the right hon. and learned Gentleman. This, again, is an important Amendment, and it should be effective in preventing to a large extent and, I hope, completely, abuse of the system with regard to legal aid in the criminal courts of the country.

I want to ask the Attorney-General a question about this. It applies also to an Amendment we recently discussed. If a person signs a statement and makes a false return in it he can be prosecuted but probably the prosecution will take place after he has received legal aid for the case in respect of which he applied for assistance. Between the time of the trial of that case and the discovery of the fraud, his circumstances may have changed and his fortunes may have fallen, so that when he is being prosecuted for signing a false statement he may be in a position to sign a correct statement and become eligible for legal aid. In that case, will he receive legal aid in connection with the prosecution for fraudulently getting legal aid?

I admire, as I always do, the ingenuity and imagination of the hon. Member for West Fife (Mr. Gallacher). In that case I think it would be possible for the man to apply for legal aid. Whether he got it or not would be in the discretion of the court.

Amendment agreed to.