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MSE News: MPs' anger at debt advice cuts
Former_MSE_Guy
Former MSE 1.7K Posts
"Opposition members are worried dodgy firms will prey upon indebted consumers due to cuts to free advice centres ..."
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It's not just the end of the Financial Inclusion Fund - the consultation on the cuts to legal aid will end on Mon 14th Feb - so please act NOW!
:money:Martin please use all media appearances to publise this campaign eg R4 You and Yours on Fri at 12noon. Please make a huge fuss about this - you can really help us.
Please do an emergency email to everyone who has signed up for the weekly email -just about this - it is that important.
Everyone please sign the petition Say no to legal aid cuts - google it and you will find the petition.
Please everyone - cut and paste this and email it to everyone you know and get them to contact their MP.
Please use some of the following and use "write to them" - (google it)
to contact your MP about this. The more fuss we make the better the chance of stopping this happening.
Legal aid is not just for lawyers - all advice agencies including the CAB are funded by legal aid for specialist advice eg debt, welfare, housing and employment. The total cuts to legal aid amount to £25m - this is not much in the context of government spending, but provides essential advice for some of the most vulnerable people in society.
According to Gillian Guy, the Chief Executive of CAB, these cuts to legal aid - together with cuts to funding from local goverment will cut the income of the average CAB by 45%. This will mean bureaux closing.
According to the Citizens Advice Cost benefit analysis, July 2010, based on data from the Civil and Social Justice Survey and the Legal Service Commission's outcomes data:
Every £1 spent on housing legal aid potentially saves the state £2.34 by avoiding adverse consequences.
Every £1 spent on debt legal aid potentially saves the state £2.98 in adverse consequences.
Every £1 spent on benefits legal aid potentially saves the state £8.80.
Every £1 spent on employment legal aid potentially saves the state £7.13.
Source: Citizen's Advice (july 2010) Towards a business case for legal aid.
According to Julie Bishop, Director of the Law Centres Federation, the proposed cuts to legal aid will have perverse conseqences.
The changes propose that you will only get housing legal aid if you are in "imminent danger" of losing your home.
If your landlord evicts you illegally - by changing the locks while you are at work and dumping your possessions on the pavement - you will not be able to get legal aid because you will have already lost your home.
If your landlord employs a solicitor and takes you to court to evict you legally - you will be able to get legal aid as you will be in imminent danger of losing your home.
This will build into the system an incentive for landlords to evict people illegally and we expect an increase in illegal evictions.
Good quality timely intervention acts to prevent client's problems from becoming major crises. Please ask the government to stop these cuts to legal aid.
Please stop this happening and fight the cuts. I am a volunteer at my local bureau and heard Julie Bishop speak at a conference yesterday (Mon 8th Feb) which is why I can quote her.
Thankyou
While I suspect the Govt will unvail some super idea to replace it - the undercurrent suggests it might well be as flawed if not more so.
You have my signiture superbargainhunter and as many more as I can send that way.
I have also seen Blakemores (a fee charging debt management company) are advertisiing in Birmingham stating that "as CABx are closing, we are here...".
It is disgusting.
I am aware that Birmingham CAB is under threat, & it has set up facebook profiles, as well as being on local bbc news, and I believe ITN news last night.
Here is the link for Birmingham CAB where it has been on the local BBC news: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-12279218
There is a facebook page supporting the fight to keep the CAB service going: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Save-Birmingham-CABs-free-independent-impartial-legal-advice/150270275026678
And finally there is a petition to keep the service open: http://www.gopetition.com/petition/42339.html
I've been sharing this wherever possible. I'll also add this to your thread.
It seems disingenuous to promote a big society idea, then remove an exemplary organisation which provides volunteering opportunities.
We are also in a situation where more than ever, people need access to good, accurat and independent money advice. Currently, Birmingham council have started refusing to deal with the CAB. Anyone with rent/council tax arrears is being told to see the councils debt team. How independent are they? Will they really act in the clients best interests? I doubt it. Birmingham CAB dealt with over £84million of debt last year. We continue in a significant economic downturn. People still need the help and support of others. It is up to us to keep such issues in the public eye.
I'm pretty sure they can't do that. I thought if you had signed authority someone culd act on your behalf? Putting it another way, even if this isn't a legal right, they would look very stupid if it went to court or similar and the council rep was standing up saying yes we did recieve the signed authority and request to CAB with sensible offers of repayment but we chose to totally ignore it.