asked the Minister for Justice the criteria used in assessing eligibility for criminal legal aid; the means which are taken into account; the person responsible for carrying out this assessment; and the total annual cost of the scheme.
Written Answers. - Criminal Legal Aid.
86.
Under the criminal legal aid scheme, the granting of legal aid is a matter for the courts, and the Supreme Court has ruled that accused persons have a constitutional right to legal aid in certain circumstances.
There are no specific financial criteria laid down to determine eligibility for criminal legal aid. The courts have sole discretion to decide on applications under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Act, 1962, and an applicant must establish to the satisfaction of the court that his means are insufficient to enable him to pay for legal representation himself. In this regard, an applicant may be required to furnish a written statement of his means to the court, or he may be questioned orally about his earnings. The court must also be satisfied in each case that interests of justice require the granting of legal aid.
In recent years, expenditure on the scheme has levelled off at around £2 million; the Estimates allocation for the current year is £2,172,000 (including value added tax at 25 per cent, and withholding tax at 35 per cent which will be recouped to the Exchequer).