Written question asked by Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord McNally (Liberal Democrat) on Thursday, 8 July 2010.

Refugee and Migrant Justice

Question: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the cost to public funds of the closure of Refugee and Migrant Justice.

Answer: Where any provider ceases to have a legal aid contract for whatever reason, the LSC will make an assessment of any potential financial issues in the individual circumstances. This will include payments on account made, claims to be billed and whether, for example, the provider will be continuing to conclude cases for existing clients. The LSC is working closely with the administrators and others to ensure that urgent arrangements are made so that clients continue to receive a good quality service and that cases are transferred to other providers where necessary. The LSC has agreed payment of £280,000 for the work to transfer RMJ clients' files. The LSC is also working with the administrators to confirm the correct payments to be made to RMJ. This assessment will take several weeks to be concluded. In the mean time, they have agreed an advance payment of £70,000 against any payment for work in progress, plus a contingency of £20,000 for this work.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 927; 720 c74WA
Session: 2010-12
Subjects: Asylum Costs Legal aid scheme Insolvency Migrants Refugee and Migrant Justice
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk