Speeches by Slade.

“On that unmet legal need, what is the role of the Legal Services Board in broadening the public’s understanding that they even have an unmet need? You talk about a third of people not accessing it, but what about the hidden third of people who do not know that they have been done an injustice?”

“Before you go on to the other two examples, how are you making sure that the huge number of people who are digitally excluded are not excluded by moving on that much in innovation and technology?”

“Yes, I was going to ask you to provide examples of how you interpret your obligation to make that happen.”

“I want to focus on your work on access to justice. One piece of written evidence submitted to this inquiry suggested that access to justice is actually “not a strategic priority” of the Legal Services Board and that, potentially, the narrow make-up of the Board—with its very limited number of people with any background…”

“Hello, I am Vikki Slade, Member of Parliament for Mid Dorset and North Poole. My interests are as per the register, but I have none related to this Committee.”

“I am not a legally involved person, and I am mortified by the complexity of the regulation in this sector. I do not know how people manage. Is having two regulators—an ombudsman and a regulator—perhaps part of the problem, and should we look to propose that you do both sides?”

“On a similar topic, according to what I have been reading today, there are more complaints about solicitors than at any time on record, with a predicted 14,000 this year. Something is clearly not going very well. The legal ombudsman is apparently not working as it should. Do you accept the Legal Services Consumer Panel…”

“We do not have a lot of time. I am interested in the leasehold point. A lot of people are buying park homes and do not even have conveyancing. Park homes in my part of the world are more expensive than bricks-and-mortar houses in many other parts. I am really interested to understand where we take that. I want to touch…”

“Does the hon. Member agree that the vague wording could lead a police force to ban, for example, a Pride protest three months after a farmers’ protest? There is no clarity as to whether a protest is damaging; it is just that the protest is cumulative.”

“That is a really good point, and I suppose it comes back to my first comment, about the makeup of the board and how you get there. I am with you, Sarah—I have never heard of them either, and I was a leader of a council, so I am sure it is something that would have come through. How do you hold the organisations that yo…”

“You will have heard my questions earlier on about the make-up of the Legal Services Board and how the lack of people with lived experience potentially means that it is not able to do its role as well. I am interested to know what the SRA is doing to make sure that the voices of those with lived experience are coming th…”

“You reference the Legal Services Consumer Panel, which has talked about a regulatory sandbox approach. Is this something that you have considered or do you think that what you are doing at the moment is sufficient?”

“I hope I am not being disingenuous. It sounds to me as though you check that they have those policies in place, but I am not sure how you measure the outcomes and that those policies are working or improving access to justice, so can you say anything more on how you do that?”

“That is a really good point, and I suppose it comes back to my first comment, about the makeup of the board and how you get there. I am with you, Sarah—I have never heard of them either, and I was a leader of a council, so I am sure it is something that would have come through. How do you hold the organisations that yo…”

“Who are you working with to make sure that that information gets down to people who are visiting food banks or people who have turned up at the courts? There are all sorts of organisations, and I am not necessarily going to go looking for something. I am interested to know how you work with real-world organisations, ra…”

“Give me an example of how you are actively doing that.”

“On that unmet legal need, what is the role of the Legal Services Board in broadening the public’s understanding that they even have an unmet need? You talk about a third of people not accessing it, but what about the hidden third of people who do not know that they have been done an injustice?”

“I want to focus on your work on access to justice. One piece of written evidence submitted to this inquiry suggested that access to justice is actually “not a strategic priority” of the Legal Services Board and that, potentially, the narrow make-up of the Board—with its very limited number of people with any background…”

“Before you go on to the other two examples, how are you making sure that the huge number of people who are digitally excluded are not excluded by moving on that much in innovation and technology?”

“It is clear that under the current leadership, the US is no longer a reliable ally, threatening European colleagues and Commonwealth nations and undermining the very purpose of NATO. As we face increasing threats from Russia, we are reliant on the US for our nuclear deterrent, for our kit and for technology. Will the M…”