Thursday, December 14, 2006

Merry Christmas
























When Santa got stuck up the chimney,
He began to shout,
You boys and girls won't get any toys,
If you don't pull me out.
My eyes are black,
There's soot in my sack,
My nose is tickly too.
When Santa got stuck up the chimney,
At-choo; At-choo; At-choo.

Victorian Christmas Song

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Legal Profession and Legal Aid Bill - Stage 3 debate

The Legal Profession and Legal Aid Bill is to be debated in the Chamber of the Scottish Parliament on 14 December 2006.


Lord Lester of Hernehill won the day concerning his amendment under the Human Rights legislation for an appeal process from the Commission. The Bill is substantially passed.

In the Chamber at Holyrood

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Reduction-ism or Ambiguity

Well all this has to have a purpose. So what are they up to in the Department of Constitutional Affairs and what purpose does it have on the English & Welsh legal system.

REDUCTION-ISM or AMBIGUITY

Lord Woolf ambiguously said "litigation will be avoided whenever possible" in a report entitled "Access to Justice".

The "consequences" of which is the anti-thesis to litigation, mediation which does the opposite when operating "within" the legal profession. IT REDUCES LITIGATION

Now the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, is reducing the numbers of small firms practising legal aid, which will significantly impact on criminal law where ambiguously there has been, I believe, an increase of some 3000 crimes since Labour came to power in 1997 - oops.

But then there were proposals to reduce 43 constabularies in E&W to, I believe, 12, which appears to have gone bye-the-bye.

Also there was a reduction in the number of regiments of the armed forces, which is happening but there are two armed conflicts occurring in Iraq and Afghanistan!!!

Now, they are planning on reducing the number of claimants of Incapacity Benefit and there are 2.9 million of them - the target for Scotland is 30,000 by 2007 and overall 66,000 by 2010, it is reckoned the target for the Lothians is 2,000 by 2007. This might be possible, I cannot see any obvious pitfall other than the manufacturing basis of the UK has gone down since 1997. Labour and the Tories are talking of reducing the cost of advertising public sector workers by having a public sector website - Jobcentre Plus not working by any chance.

But TAX doesn't appear to be an obvious reduction by the Chancellor of the Exchequer - that's a Tory issue.

Have we been invaded by a foreign concept?
Have we socially included illogic?
Does the left hand not know what the right hand is doing?
Is it all spin?

Discuss