I am grateful to The Criminal Bar Association for drawing attention to this from Hansard
I have taken the liberty of extracting the relevant passage to save you the trouble of scrolling down to find it. It would appear that Mr Grayling – who some say is not an expert in knowing arse from elbow – is not fully aware of the distinction between the Bar Council and The Criminal Bar Association
Valerie Vaz (Walsall South) (Lab):Will the Leader of the House ask the Lord Chancellor to come to the House to explain his flawed policy on legal aid? He refuses to meet the chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, the Law Society is threatening legal action, the Lord Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls are against it, and it undermines the English legal system. We need a statement or a debate in Government time.
Mr Lansley:I sat here with my right hon. and hon. Friends during Justice questions a few days ago when almost exactly the same point was made to them, and I heard them reply and say how often they meet the Criminal Bar Association and others and that they had done so recently. I will, of course, draw their attention to what the hon. Lady has said, but I heard them say that it is not true that they are not discussing this issue with those affected.
I marvel – The CBA say that Grayling refuses to meet with them and Michael Turner QC. – Astonishing…
It would be good if Mr Grayling could meet Mr Michael Turner QC , Chairman of The Criminal Bar Association, for a chat….. he will be better informed on his legal aid reform schtik..
Perhaps Mr Grayling, Lord High Chancellor….may like to listen to my podcast with Michael Turner QC to get a bit of arse from elbow briefing action before talking to Mr Turner?
Thanks but no thanks; we don’t want him here!
I can understand that….
Charon
What about a 10% surcharge on all commercial cases to top up the legal aid budget? Like the victim support surcharge….The wealthy doing their bit again and making sure it goes to deserving causes.