Written question asked by Keith Vaz (Labour) on Friday, 3 November 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 7 November 2006. It was answered by Vera Baird (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 November 2006 on behalf of the Department for Constitutional Affairs.

Legal Services Commission

Question: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the reasons are for the underspend noted in the income and expenditure columns of the Legal Services Commission Annual Report 2005-06.

Answer: The operating surplus reported in the Legal Services Commission’s Annual Report 2005-06 arose largely from the release of provision on dormant cases—see notes 4 and 13 to the accounts. The LSC set up a project to investigate and close such cases, and as a result it now has better data to estimate provision more accurately. This resulted in a reduction in the financial liability. This does not represent an underspend and has never existed as available cash.

Secondary information