Page 4619 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 19 October 2011
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delivering access to legal services to many people who may not otherwise be able to afford them. On 30 June last year the Assembly passed a motion that noted the important role CLCs provide in improving access to justice and the accommodation problems that are currently being felt by them.
The motion also called on the government to provide assistance to CLCs by evaluating accommodation options, considering the proposals for new accommodation in the budget process and to have regard to the national legal needs survey to quantify unmet legal need in the ACT. The government has supported the broad thrust of this motion, as it was adopted on 30 June 2010. CLCs do provide a valuable service to the community and have an important role to play in developing the law in their particular areas. The government will continue to support them to ensure that they can continue their important work.
The government has been active in providing assistance to these centres, working with each centre to find the best possible solution to their problem. Practical assistance has been provided in the past, including payment for renovation and fit-out work to Havelock House, which houses a number of these community legal centres. The government has also assisted by providing the Women’s Legal Centre with additional accommodation in North Lyneham at discounted rental rates. Most centres currently benefit from a subsidy in terms of the rentals they are required to pay for accommodation that they occupy.
Despite this, CLCs continue to face issues with their accommodation. To that end, my directorate has been consulting with these centres to try to find practical solutions to the housing needs that they still face. A working group has been established under the ACT Legal Assistance Forum. This working group has already been engaged to help identify solutions. Last month officers of my directorate met again with representatives of the Women’s Legal Centre, the Welfare Rights and Legal Centre and the ACT Tenants Union. A representative of the Community Services Directorate was also present to contribute to these discussions.
The government has agreed in principle to recommendation 132 from the select committee on estimates report. Community legal centres receive funding from a number of sources. The ACT government provides funding through the Justice and Community Safety Directorate and the Community Services Directorate. In addition, they are supported in part by grants from Legal Aid ACT, the Law Society and from the commonwealth.
The government has shown a continuing commitment to provide funding and support to CLCs. The fact is that the commonwealth government has provided little additional funding under the national partnership agreement on legal assistance services. We believe that there is an obligation on the part of the commonwealth to provide further assistance to these centres and I have written to the commonwealth attorney to raise these matters with him.
I am also expecting to raise this issue of funding with the federal member for Fraser, Dr Leigh, who I know is taking a close interest in these issues. The government expects to work closely with community legal centres when they make funding applications to the commonwealth to try and address these issues.
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