The Deputy will be aware that under the terms of the Civil Legal Aid Act, 1995, the Legal Aid Board has sole responsibility for the provision of legal services, including the numbers and grades of staff assigned to each law centre. I can confirm to the Deputy that the full complement of staff requested by the board has been sanctioned by my Department.
The number of staff assigned by the board to each law centre during the past five years is set out in tabular form at Table A.
The criteria used to determine financial eligibility under the Civil Legal Aid Act, which have been in existence since 1995, are under review in my Department. This review, which is being conducted in consultation with the Legal Aid Board, is nearing completion and I expect to be in a position to make a statement on the matter shortly. The current limits are set out in tabular form at Table B.
I am advised by the board that the number of applicants for legal services, per year, for the five year period ending on 31 December 2000 – 2000 is the most recent complete year for which figures are available – is as follows: