Charities Bill [HL]

My Lords, we have debated already the possibility of establishing a suitors’ fund. Indeed, we debated identical amendments in Committee. It is a pity that noble Lords did not put their amendments together for this debate. Essentially our position remains the same, but I shall restate the salient points. In establishing the Charity Appeal Tribunal, the Government’s intention is to widen access to charity law, a move which has been broadly welcomed. If it is to be a success, the tribunal must be accessible to charities both large and small, and we intend it to be so. We have already accepted that there might be a small number of cases of clear public interest where the issues are complex and the appellant might need legal advice and representation, but does not have the resources to engage them. In our view, there are two safeguards in such circumstances. First, the Attorney-General will have a power to intervene as a party to proceedings, which may well be exercised in complex cases, and could relieve the appellant of much of the cost of engaging legal representation. Secondly, legal aid may be available in certain circumstances to individuals appealing to the tribunal, which could include the trustees of unincorporated charities. Where the individual meets the criteria for financial eligibility, legal advice and assistance may be available before the tribunal begins. This may extend to obtaining counsel’s opinion or submitting a written case to the tribunal. While legal aid does not normally fund full representation by way of an advocate before most tribunals, funding can be made available to individuals in exceptional circumstances.