DEFENCE lawyers have welcomed the government’s u-turn to suspend proposed cuts to legal aid.

Justice Secretary Michael Gove announced on Thursday he was halting for a year plans to slash the number of law firms allowed to do criminal legal aid work at police stations and magistrates’ courts and an 8.75 per cent cut to legal aid fees.

It is the latest change to legal reforms introduced by Chris Grayling, Mr Gove’s predecessor at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).

The controversial Criminal Courts Charge was scrapped last year.

The MoJ has already cut legal aid fees by 8.75 per cent, but Mr Gove signalled a second reduction of 8.5 per cent had been put on hold.

Reeds Solicitors’ co-founder and defence advocate Stuart Matthews welcomed the u-turn, but questioned how much cash the government had wasted pushing through the reforms.

Mr Matthews said reducing the amount lawyers could earn from legal aid would push skilled defence advocates out of the profession.

He said this would mean people accused of crimes would not be able to get the support they need to clear their name.

He added: “It’s about access to quality representation. Plenty of people face prosecutions and the prosecutors have almost unlimited powers and funds at their disposal to persuade the courts someone is guilty.

“But on many occasions these people are innocent and they have the right to be represented, to have their voice heard, to counter the allegations made by the state.

“If you attack the right to representation you fundamentally attack the route of the criminal justice system.

“It’s massively important people have quality representation by people who know what they are doing and are properly motivated and passionate about representing people who are accused of committing crimes.”

The proposed cuts – drawn up by Mr Grayling – would have reduced the number of solicitors’ firms awarded “duty contracts” at police stations and magistrates’ courts by about two-thirds from 1,600 to 527.

Mr Matthews said by not allowing more firms to pick up new defence work it would stop defendants getting the legal representation that was best for them.

The MoJ currently faces 99 separate legal challenges over the procurement process.

Mr Gove said he will not introduce the new contracting system and has shelved the planned cuts to legal aid for a year from April 2016.

He said: “Many solicitors’ firms feared that the award of a limited number of “dual” contracts – with a restriction therefore on who could participate in the duty legal aid rota – would lead to a less diverse and competitive market.

“Many barristers feared the commercial model being designed by some solicitors’ firms would lead to a diminution in choice and potentially quality.

“By not pressing ahead with dual contracting, and suspending the fee cut, at this stage we will, I hope, make it easier in all circumstances for litigators to instruct the best advocates, enhancing the quality of representation in our courts.”