To ask the Minister of State, Lord Chancellor's Department in how many cases, and at what cost, the Legal Aid Board has provided legal aid for dispute resolution by mediation. [67611]

In the period December 1997 to December 1998, 1,962 mediations in family cases have been conducted as part of a pilot project. At this stage of the pilot project, it is not possible to provide exact cost per mediation as these costs include the cost of an initial information meeting with the clients, a contribution towards overheads and set up costs which enable mediation services to meet the requirements of the Legal Aid Board Family Mediation Franchise Specification. Legal aid has only been available for non-family cases since October 1998. It is at present not possible to provide information on the exact number or costs of non-family cases.