Northern Ireland’s Bill For Legal Aid Doubles

Legal aid costs shouldered by the average Northern Ireland taxpayer have more than doubled within the last 10 years.

The legal aid burden has risen dramatically from £30 million in 1997 to £69 million in 2007. This figure is double the increase in England and Wales.

South Belfast MP, Alasdair McDonnell said: "While I recognise the increase may be due to higher levels of poverty and therefore a high level of entitlement, we need to make sure there is efficiency in the system.”

The Court Service also released a statement outlining consultation work due to commence shortly on arrangements for managing the equally high cost of criminal cases.

Expensive cases such as the Bloody Sunday Inquiry are likely to have swollen the taxpayer's bill to date, with its estimated cost of up to £200 million alone - part of which went to legal aid costs.

The Northern Ireland Court Service however attributed the soaring bills to "a range of factors including changes in the volume and profile of cases, timing of payments and the levels of remuneration determined as appropriate for individual cases".

(DW)