Write to your MP

Changes in legal aid have a direct impact on every MP’s constituency.  We urge you to write to your MP asking them to get involved in the legal aid debate.  The easiest way to send a message to your MP is via the WriteToThem website: http://www.writetothem.com/  It is easy to use: simply type in your postcode and the website will identify your MP for you and provide you with an online form to submit directly to them with your message.  Please find below a standard text you may use in your letter or e-mail to your MP:

Dear [INSERT THE NAME OF YOUR MP]

I write to ask you to visit the website of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Legal Aid www.appg-legalaid.org and join the Group.

Access to justice is a fundamental democratic right that cannot be achieved without legal aid. You probably already know from your weekly surgery that there is still much unmet need for free legal advice. Legal aid provision is going through a period of profound change that has created instability in the industry and threatens the future of quality legal advice and representation for those who cannot afford to pay.

All the recent reforms to legal aid have been introduced through statutory instruments without debate in Parliament. It is hoped this APPG will help to rectify this lack of scrutiny, acting as a forum for discussion of social exclusion issues surrounding legal aid and helping to promote the work many legal aid practices carry out as the fourth emergency service.

Yours sincerely

[INSERT YOUR NAME]