The debate is currently raging in the House of Lords over the future of the Legal Aid system in England and Wales.

Legal Aid provides government funding to ensure that everybody has access to justice, protection of their basic rights and has a fair hearing.

Following the Second World War thought was given to creating a fairer society for the post-war population who had essentially lost everything, and a government saddled with debt. And so, the Welfare State was born. This was in recognition of the fact that certain rights were fundamental to society such as education, housing and health care. This in turn led to the creation of the NHS and, following the Legal Aid and Legal Advice Act 1949, Legal Aid.

The Government is planning to cut £350m from the Legal Aid budget and this in turn will lead to 250,000 fewer cases involving family disputes, 140,000 welfare benefits, 110,000 debt cases, 50,000 with serious housing problems and 30,000 with employment problems.

The worry is that in these straightened economic time these reforms will impact most on the poorest members of society. As a result of the cuts, it is likely to be the end of the law centre movement.

Lord Bach went on to say that “Lack of advice can lead to problems escalating out of control, leading to hopeless debt, relationship breakdown and sometimes a descent into crime.”

He went on to say: "At a time of economic hardship , it's madness to cut legal aid”.